


Trope Bingo

by Skyson



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Coulace, M/M, Phone Sex, Sharing a Bed, Transformation, Tropes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-28
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-06 12:23:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 21,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12211221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skyson/pseuds/Skyson
Summary: Just me having some fun with Phil Coulson and Jeffrey Mace. Each chapter stands alone.





	1. Turned Into An Animal

**Author's Note:**

> Each chapter, of varying lengths, stands alone. They cover various different tropes, and if you’d like to see any one in particular, please feel free to write a request in the comments.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A mysterious blue cube, shape-shifting, overly-protective Coulson, and a cute little kitten named Jeff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to go with one of the odder tropes right off the bat. Writing this one was fun :) Hope you enjoy.

“That’s — not… good.” Phil stared down at the floor where Jeff stood just a brief second ago.

In his place was a pile of clothes and a small, grey kitten. It wasn’t incredibly tiny - perhaps maybe four to six months old - and it was looking about erratically, clearly overwhelmed and confused.

And it wouldn’t stop meowing.

“Um, that’s…” Phil had no idea what to do for a moment. The cat whirled around and stared up at him, stumbling a bit comically to the side as if it were unfamiliar with it’s own body. Which, if Phil’s assumptions were correct, it probably _was_  unfamiliar with it’s own body.

The cat leapt and hissed, backing away quickly until it bumped up against a stack of boxes, and it cowered against them, staring wide-eyed at Phil.

“No no no, it’s alright, shh,” Phil crouched down and held his hand out toward the cat, trying to soothe it.

If it really was Jeff, he'd better not lose it.

“C’mere, boy,” Phil called as softly as he could, holding his hand palm-up. The kitten eventually quieted down, and very hesitantly approached him, sniffing at his knuckles. “Um. Jeffrey?” Phil wondered carefully, and the cat jerked it’s head up, blinking at him. It's wide eyes looked absolutely terrified. “Holy hell.” Phil breathed out. “Alright, we’ll fix this, I’ll call Jemma, and we’ll change you back,” He got to his feet and pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Holy _hell_ ,” He cursed again as he dialed.

“Mraaaaaowwww,” The kitten cried pitifully, and Phil’s heart wrenched a little.

Damn, but it was _adorable_.

“C’mere, okay?” Phil knelt again and patted his knee. “I don’t want you to get stepped on…” The cat - Jeff - moped over closer and allowed Phil to carefully cradle him in the crook of his arm.

“Agent Coulson?” Jemma answered her phone, and Phil focused on that as he eyed the object Jeff had last touched, backing out of the room with the kitten in hand.

“Are you in the lab? Meet me there,” Phil ordered before she answered his question, “We have a situation. A - um - a big one,” In a teeny package, “Keep it quiet. I want the room clear when I get there.”

“Got it,” Jemma confirmed, all business, clearly wanting to know more details but heeding Phil’s instructions.

“On my way.” Phil told her, ending the call and slipping his phone back in his pocket. “We’ll fix this.” He muttered again, almost hiding the cat in his arms as he hurried down the hallway.

**———**

  
“I…don’t…” Jemma just stared at the kitten that stood awkwardly atop the holotable in the otherwise empty lab. “This is impossible.”

“I _saw_  it happen. Jeff touched the box, I blinked, Jeff was gone and the cat was standing in his place.” Phil insisted quietly, almost whispering although they were alone in the room.

“Rowwwwwwwr,” Jeff-cat whined quietly, pawing dejectedly at the table.

Jemma immediately melted and stepped closer, sliding her fingers comfortingly through his fur.

“Oh,” She yanked her hand away, “Sorry, that's probably weird.”

Jeff-cat stood and padded closer to her at the edge of the table, and put his paw against her hand for a moment.

“Oh-Kay,” Jemma glanced toward Phil but continued petting the cat, who seemed to relax eventually, at least a little bit. “He’s very cute.” She admitted, smiling a little. “My parents used to own a couple of Scottish Folds. Sweet little things, very cuddly.”

Jeff-cat pulled away from her and gave her a rather aghast expression.

“Sorry, uh, Sir.” Jemma apologized awkwardly.

“So you can fix this, right?” Phil asked anxiously, stepping closer to them. Jemma stared at him.

“Turn this cat back into our Director?” She clarified, and Phil nodded. She raised her eyebrow. “Coulson, I,”

“We have to fix this.” Phil insisted.

“ _Obviously_ ,

“Well,”

“Agent Coulson.” She interrupted as he started to pace. “Calm down. I’ll have Fitz and a small team - ”

“No!” At his outburst, she gave him a wry look.

“I’ll have _Fitz_  retrieve the object - you’ll want to go with him to make sure he secures the correct one - and we’ll study it. We need to figure out how it changed Director Mace, so we can get it to change him back.”

“He can’t just… touch it again?”

“I’d rather not risk that… what if he just turns into another animal?” Jemma pointed out, and Phil conceded that.

“Alright, just…” Phil sighed and scratched the back of his neck. “How long do you think this will take?”

“I’m not sure I can answer that accurately.” She replied. “In the meantime just… make sure he’s taken care of? Perhaps keep him secured in the office?” She looked down at the kitten again. “Honestly, otherwise he seems in very healthy condition.”

“What a relief.” Phil sighed sarcastically.

“Maow?” Jeff-cat moved closer to the edge of the table where Phil was standing, and butted his head against his arm. Phil looked down at him, and he repeated the action again, rubbing his cheek against Phil’s arm.

“It’s alright. It’ll be alright.” Phil promised, telling himself that as well.

**———**

“Mraow.” Jeff-cat scolded, and Phil huffed and rolled his eyes.

“Of course I called Talbot - he needs to know that the Director of SHIELD is a fucking cat!”

“Mraow! Merrrr. Raowr, mrao, rrrr,” Angry little kitten meows continued on as Phil raised his voice to talk over him,

“I don’t care! I’m interim Director and this is on me. We have to figure out how to change you back! You can’t just disappear for however long this is going to take - Talbot will flip his shit!”

“Rrrrrrowr.” Jeff-cat huffed, sitting as he licked at his front paw almost angrily, his tail swishing about in annoyance.

“Don’t make that face at me! I’m in charge here!”

“Coulson? Who the hell are you arguing with? What - is that a cat?” Talbot stepped into the room, frowning deeply as he stared at the kitten sitting in the middle of the room. Phil was standing across from it, his hands on his hips and a consternated expression on his face.

“It’s, uh,” Phil wasn’t actually sure how to put this into words. It didn’t sound sane to himself, and he’d been there when it happened.

“Were you arguing with a cat?” Talbot demanded incredulously. “Have you lost your ever-loving mind?”

“You might, after you hear this,” Phil replied dryly. A knock on the door frame behind Talbot drew their attention to the hallway.

“Agent Coulson, can you come by the lab for a moment?” Jemma requested, a serious expression on her face. “It won’t take long.” Her tone said that it was important, and Phil sighed.

“I’ll be right back. Just… stay here.” Phil ordered as he stepped around Talbot and followed Jemma.

Talbot looked at the cat.

“Was he talking to you, or me?” He asked rhetorically, and the cat blinked at him.

Talbot glanced over his shoulder hesitantly, and when he saw that he was truly alone, he stepped closer to the small animal and crouched down to hold his hand out for it to sniff.

“Hey, little guy,” He murmured, then hesitated. “You are a guy, right?” The cat leaned up on it’s back haunches, standing like a meerkat, and put it’s paws on Talbot’s knee. “I’ll take that as confirmation,” Talbot smirked, and gently scratched behind the little folded ears.

Jeff-cat preened and butted his head against Talbot’s hand, encouraging the petting, shifting his paws further up Talbot’s thigh. Glancing over his shoulder one more time, Talbot picked up the kitten with one hand under his belly as he stood, taking the pressure off of his knees and cuddling the cat against his chest.

“You’re the cutest little furball,” Talbot whispered secretively, and Jeff-cat rolled in his grasp onto his back, his paws all curled into his belly. Talbot grinned and rubbed the pads of his fingers into the soft fur, and Jeff-cat closed his eyes, almost appearing as if he were smiling. After a moment of fantastic belly-rubs, Jeff-cat decided it was time to play and began trying to grab Talbot’s fingers between his paws. Talbot chuckled softly as he played with him for a moment, before eventually Jeff-cat twisted within his hold and propped his front two paws against Talbot’s chest, looking up at him with those big blue eyes of his.

There was a startling amount of character in those eyes, and Talbot stared at the kitten for a moment.

“That’s kind of freaky.” Talbot commented, though he wasn’t quite sure why.

Jeff-cat reached out and batted at his mustache.

“Hey,” Talbot complained, but he pursed out a short breath of air and Jeff-cat batted at his mustache again. Talbot smirked and started making faces at the kitten, getting his facial hair to move a bit, playing again.

He heard footsteps approaching down the hall and quickly settled the kitten back on the floor, standing up straight and brushing his hands against the front of his uniform - though there wasn’t much evidence of fur on the dark fabric.

“Hey, sorry about that,” Phil apologized as he entered the room again, closing the door behind him. “You may want to sit down for this,”

Furrowing his brow, Talbot slowly approached one of the chairs in front of the desk as Phil settled behind it.

“Why are you sitting at Mace’s desk? Where is he?” Talbot wondered curiously.

Jeff-cat hopped up onto Talbot’s lap, surprising the man and causing him to flinch. He glanced sharply at Phil and Phil watched them hesitantly.

“That’s Jeff,” Phil swallowed, gesturing toward the kitten that was making itself comfortable in Talbot’s lap.

“You named your cat after Mace?” Talbot wondered, frowning even more. “You know, I’ve been suspecting there was something between you two, but this might be a little too weird,”

“No,” Phil interrupted quickly and a bit urgently, not wanting Jeff-cat to hear whatever Talbot would continue to say, “I mean _that_  is Jeffrey Mace. He…became…a cat.”

Talbot stared for a long time, his expression unwavering.

“This is possibly the weirdest prank I’ve ever received.” Talbot eventually said.

“It’s not a prank, unfortunately. Look,” Phil sighed heavily. “There’s no way to explain it without sounding insane. We were inventorying storage rooms and found some objects that weren’t registered in the system,”

“Damn right this is insane!” Talbot interrupted. He was quickly accepting that it wasn’t a prank though, because to be honest, these guys always did find themselves in the weirdest shit. “How the hell - what are we supposed to - are you _sure_?”

“It happened right in front of me.” Phil confirmed.

“Why the - _why_  was the Director doing _inventory_?”

“ _That's_  your question? Seriously?”

“How did it happen?” Talbot demanded a little more levelly. He picked up Jeff-cat in his hands and held him up at eye-level, arms length away. Jeff-cat made an indignant meow at his nap being interrupted, but hung still within Talbot’s grasp. “Is it reversible?”

“That’s what Simmons was discussing with me a moment ago. We’re working on it.”

“You’re working on it?” Talbot repeated. He looked at the cat again. Fuck, if it really _was_  Jeffrey, and if he was conscious or whatever within the cat form… hell. He’d just practically snuggled with Jeffrey Mace.

Talbot shot to his feet and set the cat down on Phil’s desk, stepping away from it and beginning to pace.

“I’m guessing,” Talbot began to focus on the logistics of how this would need to be handled, “You’re standing in as Director in the meantime?”

Phil nodded, and Jeff-cat meowed with annoyance. Phil rolled his eyes, and Talbot’s eye twitched as he watched them.

“How _long_  has Jeffrey been… a cat?” He asked suspiciously, struggling to finish the question.

“Uh… about a week, now.” Phil admitted with some shame, and Talbot gaped at him.

“You - why didn’t you tell me immediately?!”

“We wanted to see if he would change back on his own!” Phil argued, and Talbot groaned and pressed his fingers against the bridge of his nose. This was giving him a headache.

“Fuck me,” Talbot cursed. “Alright, keep me updated on the situation. _Timely_  updates,” He warned. “Whatever the hell did this, lock it up, make sure Fitz doesn’t turn into a goddamn monkey or something; we’ll never get him back.” He stalked toward the door, and then turned to glare at both Phil and the cat one more time. “And for the love of all that is holy, don’t _ever_  let Jeffrey do inventory again!”

Talbot slammed the door on his way out, and Jeff-cat meowed happily, swishing his tail side to side. Phil gave him a dry look.

“There are other, worse consequences than inventory duty.” He pointed out. Jeff-cat huffed and hopped down off of the desk, jumping into the chair Talbot had been sitting in and curling up in the residual warmth left behind.  


**———**  


“Do cats see in color?” Phil wondered, holding his glass up within the ray of moonlight that shone through the window. Without any lights on in the office, the bourbon looked almost black.

Jeff-cat chirped quietly from where he lounged atop the desk, his tail lazily flipping about, eyes half-closed with contentment.

“I don’t remember,” Phil continued, sipping from the glass before setting it on the corner of the desk and leaning forward, resting his elbows on the edge. “You're mostly grey, you know. Kind of light grey. Except here,” He pressed the pad of his finger between Jeff-cat’s eyes, “Your fur is darker. And your ears, too, tiny as they are. Like a… a um, Siamese cat.”

Jeff-cat blinked sleepily.

“Your little nose is really pink, though,” Phil grinned. “It's cute.”

“Mrawr.”

“Your eyes are still blue, so that's the same.” Phil sounded pleased by that (he was), and he picked up his glass again. “Here. No fun drinking alone, after all.” Phil rolled his chair sideways to pick up the water dish that was on the floor beside the desk, and set it next to the kitten, pouring a tiny bit of his bourbon into the water.

Jeff-cat got to his feet and sniffed it curiously.

“I don't think it'll hurt ya… just a couple of drops, anyway. You might not even taste anything.” Phil shrugged. Jeff-cat looked at him, and he tapped his glass against the bowl. “Cheers.”

He took another drink as the kitten’s tiny pink tongue lapped at the water.

He didn’t give the kitten any more, but he did refill his own glass once or twice more. He couldn’t really remember, anyway; finding himself slouching back in the Director’s chair, Jeff-cat curled up in his lap, sleeping belly-up. Phil smiled down at the ball of fur, resting his hand lightly against his belly, brushing his thumb through the softness. Jeff-cat sighed and purred, and with his other hand Phil pressed his finger against the kitten’s nose.

“Boop,” He whispered, and chuckled.  


**———**  


“Anything new?” Phil fretted as Jemma scanned Jeff-cat using the holotable and Fitz’s dwarves.

“Nothing. Healthy as ever, for a cat.” The scientist answered, as Fitz stood off to the side with his tablet in hand, eyeballing the kitten suspiciously.

“Mraow!” Jeff-cat meowed loudly in Phil’s direction, and Jemma raised her eyebrow.

“Honestly, I’m surprised at how vocal he is. These breeds aren’t known to make as much noise as some other breeds.” Jemma mused.

“Rrrr.”

“It _is_  still Jeffrey, remember. He’s probably just trying to talk.” Phil pointed out. The kitten huffed at him and sat down, licking his paw and brushing it against his head. “What else do you know about Scottish Folds?”

“Well, many of them usually exhibit some sort of health issues regarding the ears; infections and such, but he’s completely healthy. Though I should say, with the uh…” Jemma turned red, and Phil raised his eyebrow. “You might want to keep an eye on spraying? Marking his territory?”

The kitten lurched to it’s feet and bared it’s teeth, not making a noise, but clearly very affronted.

Phil snorted, and Jeff-cat turned his back to all of them and plopped back down on his butt, pointedly ignoring them while he continued to wash his face.

“They’re very intelligent,” Jemma continued, moving on, “And fairly calm, for the most part. They are playful but after a bout of energy they’re known to sleep half the day.”

“And, um, I mean, aren’t cats usually kind of… standoffish?” Phil wondered, talking a little quieter now. Jemma gave him a confused look.

“I suppose. Folds are known to be more affectionate than other breeds, yes… why?”

“Been cuddling a lot with our Director, Agent Coulson?” Fitz piped up, raising his eyebrow knowingly. Phil gave him a warning glare.

“Just because Hunter is gracing these halls with his presence once more, doesn’t mean you need to become like him.” Phil grouched, and Fitz smirked but focused back onto his tablet in his hands.

“Um, I wouldn’t worry about it,” Jemma quickly consoled, “It’s probably simple instinct. After all, he _does_  calm down if you pet him. I’m sure the physical contact relieves stress - and we need him as stress-free as possible. Who knows how this could be affecting the human parts of him.”

“You’re supposed to know that!” Phil started to fret again.

Jeff-cat sighed and trotted over to him, giving his back end a little wiggle in warning before jumping onto Phil’s shoulder. Phil flinched in surprise but got his hands up to make sure the kitten didn’t fall off as it draped itself over his shoulder, it’s nose and paws resting against Phil’s collarbone as Phil supported it’s hind legs.

“It’s like a little baby.” Fitz commented, half-fond and half-disturbed.

“He _is_  an adolescent cat, Fitz,” Jemma reminded.

“How’s the search into the cube coming along?” Phil asked, wanting to draw their attention away from the way Jeff-cat was snuggling his snout against Phil’s neck. He did have to admit, though, that it had a calming effect on him, as well.

“Not as well as I would like,” Jemma frowned deeply, switching off the holotable. “I have a hard time believing that the artifact has gone all these years without being registered in the system, but I’ve found nothing on it. And there was no information in your black box?”

Phil shook his head, and Jemma sighed.

“We may have to get a hold of Director Fury. Perhaps he knows something about it.”

“Has anyone asked the Koenig’s, yet?” Fitz put in, and they both turned toward him. “One of them might know, right? I mean, Billy knows practically everything about SHIELD. And Sam knows whatever his brother doesn’t know.”

“I have no idea how they’ll be able to keep this quiet.” Phil admitted with a sigh.

“You trusted them with the Darkhold, didn’t you?” Fitz pointed out.

“Yeah, but this is _Jeff_ ,” Phil replied, and the two scientists shared a knowing look between them.  


**———**  


As another week went by, Phil started to feel a little bad about Jeff-cat being mostly secluded in the office, so he allowed the kitten to join him whenever he patrolled the base, and sleep in his quarters at nighttime.

Though that specific luxury was under threat after the first few mornings Phil was woken up before his five o’clock alarm, by a cat sitting on his chest, bopping him in the nose until he opened his eyes.

“You keep this up and I’m neutering you.” Phil warned grouchily one morning, bleary-eyed as he poured food into the other cat bowl that was in the room. Jeff-cat swished his tail fussily but dutifully sat still as he waited for Phil to put the bowl back on the floor.

That afternoon, Phil entered the lab to check on where he’d left Jeff-cat to hang out for a bit, finding the kitten sitting atop Fitz’s beloved self-created floor sweeper. It was basically a high-end roomba, and apparently also a ride for cats. Watching Jeff-cat entertaining himself was amusing for the others, too, and Phil made sure he got some photos so he could tease Jeff about this once everything was back to normal.

He refused to think of the possibility of things _never_  going back to normal.

Granted, having to help a cat figure out how to use a toilet wasn’t exactly something Phil ever expected to do in his lifetime.

“Bloody hell, did that cat just -! When the hell did we get a cat?!” Hunter’s voice carried down the hall, drifting into the lab, and not long after an energetic blur of fur bounded into the room. Footsteps sounded quickly after, and Hunter appeared in the doorway with a dumbfounded expression on his face. “I just saw a cat use the loo.”

“You _watched_  him?” Fitz scrunched up his nose, glancing toward the corner where the cat had disappeared in a flash of fluff, on one of his hyperactive rampages now.

“ _No_ , I didn’t - it’s a cat for crying out loud, do they not shit in public anyway?” Hunter scoffed. “I swear I heard the bloody toilet flush!”

“Of course he uses the toilet,” Jemma huffed, rolling her eyes, and Hunter gaped at them.

“Hey guys, have you seen - ” Phil stepped into the room, just as the kitten came sliding toward him from beneath one of the tables. It attacked his shoe and then took off toward the nearest corner. “Oh, there he is.”

“Is that thing _yours_?” Hunter exclaimed, shocked all over again.

“He’s not a thing,” Phil chided him, and whistled sharply between his teeth. “Hey! What did I say about goofing off in the lab?” He warned, and the cat slunk back into their view, looking somewhat ashamed of himself. “We don’t need any more shit happening to you. Now come on,”

Hunter stared as the kitten scrambled up Phil’s leg until Phil got a hold of him and lifted him up onto his shoulder, where the cat quickly settled as if it were a parrot or something.

“I get needing to expel energy but you either do it in the gym or play with the toys I bought you in the office!” Phil continued to scold as he walked out of the room with the small cat on his shoulder.

Hunter was speechless for a long minute, and eventually turned back to give FitzSimmons a questionable look. He opened his mouth, but wasn’t even sure where to begin, and threw his hands into the air before stalking back out into the hallway.

He still had to pee, anyway.  


**———**  


“Oh, God, that’s ripe.” Jemma held her hand over her nose as she frowned toward Jeff-cat, who had hopped up onto the couch next to her in the lounge. “What did you get into?”

He looked at her innocently, blinking his big blue eyes.

“Coulson, you should consider bathing him,” Jemma suggested seriously.

“Excuse me?” Phil spluttered, and Hunter frowned as he plopped down into one of the recliners.

“Don’t cats just lick ‘emselves? Have a hatred of water, and all that?” Hunter pointed out, giving Jeff-cat a weird look when the cat stared at him like he was nuts. “Your cat isn’t normal, mate.” Hunter informed Coulson.

“Oh, I know.” Phil sighed dryly, and got to his feet. He picked up the kitten and cradled him close to his chest, sniffing his upper back. “Damn, that is nasty. What the hell _did_  you get into?” Phil asked the cat, who only tried to look innocent again.

“Mraow.”

“I swear, that thing knows what we’re saying.” Hunter whispered to Jemma with wide eyes, staring after Phil as he trudged up the stairs with the cat in his arms. Jemma made a noncommittal noise, and Phil was soon out of earshot.

“You really should consider bathing yourself, though? More than just your paws and head, anyway. You _are_  a cat, after all.” Phil advised Jeff-cat, who grimaced in response.

Jeff-cat moped while he stood in the shallow bath as Phil scrubbed him down, but he kept as still as possible and was careful not to scratch Phil’s skin. He was shivering by the time Phil rinsed him down completely, and practically dove into the big fluffy towel Phil cocooned him in.

“Good boy,” Phil murmured distractedly as he pulled the stopper in the drain and rinsed any remaining cat hair from the tub, cuddling the bundled up kitty close to his chest in an effort to help warm him up.

Jeff-cat purred, nuzzling his face against the open collar of Phil’s polo and resting against his warm skin.

Phil had never considered himself a cat person, before - really, he didn't often think about pets in general. However, he was finding himself very fond of these moments, and in an odd way was somewhat sad to think of the little kitten eventually being gone. But that would also mean that Jeff was back to human, so he couldn't very well be sad about _that_.

Phil sighed tiredly as he settled carefully onto the bathroom floor, leaning his back against the outside edge of the tub as he rearranged the bundled kitty more comfortably in his arms.  


**———**

  
As was the new usual now, Phil awoke a little before five to make sure Jeff-cat had food and water and that the toilet seat was left up so he would be able to use it should he need to. While Phil dressed, still bleary-eyed, Jeff-cat curled on his back nestled atop the bed duvet, falling back asleep almost immediately.

“I'm getting too old for this,” Phil grumbled, brushing his hand against the stubble on his chin. It was way more grey than he remembered, and he was honestly debating whether or not he wanted to take the time to shave. He could spend another fifteen minutes curled up in bed…

Phil watched fondly as Jeff-cat peeked his eyes open and glared at his own twitching tail, giving it a moment before grasping it between his paws and chewing on it. Phil chuckled at the cute antics of the kitten, drawing the furball’s attention. He was draping his tie through his collar when the cat decided _that_  was a toy, and leapt at him, front paws landing low against Phil's stomach. Holding himself up against Phil's belly, he tried to bat at the hanging fabric, and Phil clicked his tongue against his teeth warningly.

“Hey! I don't care how cute you are - my ties are not toys!”

Jeff-cat huffed and hopped back, tail twitching again. Catching it from the corner of his eye, he whirled around and began playing with it again, and Phil quickly finished securing his tie while the cat was distracted.

“Do you mind hanging in here for a bit? You should have everything you need. I have to head out for a few hours.” Phil sat on the edge of the bed, turned slightly as he looked down at the kitten.

He looked up at Phil thoughtfully, once more on his back with his tail between his paws again, and then got to his feet and padded over into Phil's lap, putting his paws up on Phil's chest and butting his cheek against the man’s chin.

“I'll take that as an okay,” Phil smiled as he gave the kitten a good head rub before lifting him off of his lap and setting him back onto the bed. “I'll send somebody by to check in on you if I'm not back soon enough.” Phil promised as he got to his feet.

It was a short and easy mission; observation only, but he didn't want Jeff to worry about him. As Jemma had warned before, no unnecessary stress.

He didn't notice how the kitten worriedly watched him leave the room, though, or pace around the bed for a moment before eventually curling up atop the pillow Phil had slept on.

Jeff-cat napped off and on for a while, interspersing his sleep with playtime; Phil had bought a few toys for the kitten to entertain himself with, and while he was hesitant and a little humiliated at first, the kitten instincts kicked in soon enough and he'd barrel around the room with a stuffed mouse quite frequently.

He didn't see anyone until Daisy slipped into the room an untold amount of time later; he was fine with that. It was actually kind of nice not to have constant supervision for once. When Daisy showed up, though, with creases on her brow and a thin smile on her lips, Jeff-cat slunk around her legs quickly, meowing up at her non-stop.

“What, are you hungry?” She asked, crouching down to pet him. He pushed his head against her hand for a moment, appreciating the touch, but then hopped away from her and continued meowing. “Geez, Jemma told me you were _quiet_ ,” Daisy laughed softly, standing straight and moving to his food bowl.

It was empty, and he was hungry, but he was more interested in knowing how Phil was doing.

She fed him and gave him fresh water and gave him a good deal of pets, but she wouldn't talk about Phil; nothing outside of her curiosity at his owning a cat. Jeff-cat realized that she didn't know who he was, and while he was surprised that Phil hadn't told her, he had no idea how he would be able to get the information across.

The hours passed by much more noticeably now, and as the sun set, Daisy's worry lines grew deeper. Jeff probably wasn't helping - he hadn't touched his food yet - but he couldn't help it.

“Well, I can't stay in here forever,” Daisy sighed, turning off Phil's tv and sitting forward on the bed. She looked around the room as if she still felt uncomfortable, even after spending the last couple of hours here. “If I bring you with me, you won't run off, right? Stick by my side, like you do Coulson?”

Hopeful that he would learn some things if he was good, Jeff-cat immediately hopped up onto her shoulder, his preferred place to be whenever Phil walked the halls. He didn't have to worry about getting stepped on, and plus he could see much better. Daisy's shoulders weren't quite as broad as Phil's, but Jeff-cat was still small enough that it wasn't too much of a problem.

Daisy kind of laughed a little, but scratched behind his ears as she carefully got to her feet.

Jeff-cat tried to pay attention to as much as he could as Daisy walked the familiar path toward the labs, but it was a bit overwhelming. He could smell the tension in the air, and every now and then they would pass an agent hurrying in some direction with an extremely serious expression on their face.

Jemma, noticeably, did not reveal Jeff's identity either, though she clearly looked uncomfortable when Daisy started talking in urgent, low tones.

“I need to get out there and help,” Daisy insisted, and Jemma glanced at Jeff-cat.

“He asked you to look after,”

“Yes, the _cat_ , I know, but damn, Simmons, you and I both know that I can find him! I've done it before!” Daisy hissed, and Jeff-cat couldn't help but grip his claws anxiously into her shirt. Phil was missing? “Ow,” Daisy winced, and he immediately retracted his claws, purring apologetically. She lifted him off of her shoulder and held him in her arms, petting him distractedly as she paced a little.

“He knows something is wrong,” Jemma murmured softly, giving Jeff-cat an apologetic look.

“Pets often do, right?” Daisy remembered, and paused as she looked down at the kitten, soothing her touch in his fur. “I'm sorry, little guy. I'm probably not helping, huh? Don't worry, we'll find him.”

Jeff-cat tensed and looked at Jemma.

“He won't even eat.” Daisy sighed. “Fat good I'm doing looking after his pet. Can't you? I know he's hung around here before and he's comfortable in the lab with you! I need to be out there, Jemma.”

“I know.” Jemma murmured, and they shared a look, and Jeff briefly wondered just what was going on between Phil and Daisy, and what did Jemma know about it? “Perhaps try a can of tuna?” Jemma mused suddenly. “I've never known a cat to turn down tuna, even an anxious cat.”

“Okay,” Daisy nodded, a bit relieved. She didn't want Phil to come home to a half-starved cat. “I'll try that.”

“And bring it in here? I'll look after him.” Jemma said, giving Daisy a different kind of look, and Daisy both relaxed and straightened her spine at the same time.

“Thank you, Jemma.” She said sincerely.

Jeff had never been a big fan of tuna - it was alright, it just wasn't his favourite. But when Daisy walked back into the lab with that bowl of fish and set it atop Jeff's designated counter space on Jemma’s desk, he probably couldn't have ignored it under threat of death.

Both ladies watched with some amusement as he attacked the bowl with a ferocious hunger, and he only halfway noticed when Daisy slipped away again.

She didn't come back by the time Jeff was losing his daytime energy, and Phil hadn't returned either. Jemma moved some of his things into she and Fitz’s room for the night, but as tired as he was Jeff couldn't sleep. He paced the room, doing his best to keep quiet and not wake the other two.

Somehow, though, Jemma still knew that he hadn't slept much, because the next morning instead of heading straight to the labs, she first carried Jeff-cat toward Phil's quarters.

“I'll be working most of the day, but I'm thinking this may help… my cats used to get agitated when I would leave for overnights at a friend's house. I started leave a few shirts out for them, and my parents said they always seemed more at ease…” Jemma explained while he sat on the bed and watched her dig through Phil's closet.

“Perhaps this one will do,” She mused, pulling out a polo that she recognized Phil wore more often than others. She held it out for Jeff-cat to sniff, and he couldn't help rubbing his cheek against it. “There we go,” She murmured as she loosely wrapped the fabric around him and picked him up, carrying him back to the labs.

He could muse over the implications later, but being surrounded by Phil's familiar scent now comforted him immensely, and he even slept curled in the bundle of fabric on an extra med bed while Jemma worked.

Thankfully, she didn't tease him about it.  


**———**  


Almost another full day went by before Daisy returned, with Phil in tow. He was mildly bruised, scraped, and dirty; apparently he'd been held in some kind of dirt-walled wine cellar. Other than that, though, he was alright.

Jeff-cat curled in and around Phil's ankles as he sat on a chair and allowed Jemma to examine a deeper scratch over the bridge of his nose.

“Holy hell, cat, shut up,” Daisy griped good-naturedly; tired from her all-night-and-then-some search for Phil. She was just as pleased as Jeff-cat was, though; he could tell.

“I hope he wasn't like this the whole time,” Phil said apologetically, reaching down to pull the kitten up onto his lap, grimacing as he did so. Nothing was broken, but his entire body ached.

“He actually wasn't so bad once I gave him one of your shirts to sleep on.” Jemma admitted. “Sorry,” She shrugged, but Phil smiled as he rubbed the kittens cheeks with his thumbs.

“Ol’ Jeff needed a security blanket, huh?” Phil teased, and Jeff-cat huffed and narrowed his eyes, though he continued letting Phil pet him.

“Jeff?” Daisy repeated, raising her eyebrow high. “As in, _Jeffrey Mace_ , Jeff?”

“It's uh,” Phil started, unsure of how to explain this. He absolutely trusted Daisy to know the truth, but hearing it she might just think he was crazy.

“That was his name at the pound.” Jemma explained, and Daisy slowly turned toward her friend, giving her that same look. “It's something of a joke between Coulson and Director Mace, apparently,” Jemma tried, shrugging, and Phil winced a little.

“A joke?” Daisy repeated, looking back at Phil. “So is this like a, dual-custody sort of thing? Are you and Mace pet-Dads?”

“No,” Phil hurriedly denied, figuring quickly that telling her the story would go over better than allowing her to continue down that road, “This _is_ Jeff. Mace.”

Daisy stared at him for a long, quiet moment.

“Did you check him for a concussion, too?” Daisy asked Jemma, her eyes on Phil.

“It's true,” Jemma admitted quietly, and gestured Daisy over toward the holotable. “Here's the object that did it,” She pulled up a scan of the mysterious cube. “We’re still trying to figure out how it works. How we can change him back.”

Daisy examined the scan for another drawn out moment, while Phil nervously pet Jeff-cat, and the kitten purred softly in an attempt to help him relax. Daisy then turned toward them, and folded her arms across her chest.

“So our Director _hasn't_  been at some secret symposium for the past near month - he's been riding around Coulson’s shoulder?” She shook her head, but continued to stare at the kitten in Phil's lap. “This is…insane.”

“I watched it change him right in front of me,” Phil admitted. “It's unfortunately true.”

“Why haven't you told anyone?” Daisy wondered, and he gave her a look. “Okay, point. So… are you any closer to figuring out how to fix it? Get him human again?”

“Sam apparently has some information on the cube; he's on his way back from Germany now, finally. Actually, should be here midday tomorrow.” Phil told her, and she let out a heavy breath before pinching the bridge of her nose for a moment.

“Alright. Who all knows about this? The truth, I mean?” Daisy asked.

“Coulson, myself, and Fitz - and now you.” Jemma answered. “Oh, yes, of course General Talbot.”

“Damn,” Daisy snorted, “wish I could've been a fly on the wall during _that_  conversation!” She hesitated at their uncomfortable looks. “Not literally a fly. Obviously.”

“Mraow?” Jeff-cat piped up, standing on his back haunches and resting one front paw against Phil's chest.

“I'm alright,” Phil assured the kitten softly. “The guys who held me hostage are in custody now, and no one else is searching for me. Promise.”

“You understood what he wanted?” Daisy wondered, half-disturbed and half-amazed.

“Well, considering I've spent the better part of a month with him as my shadow, yeah, I'd say we've come to a certain kind of understanding.” Phil rolled his eyes, catching too late how Daisy's sparkled a little.

“Mm, have you? Are you guys gonna be best buddies when he's human again?” She teased. Phil shifted uncomfortably in his chair for a moment, and Jeff-cat simply swished his tail at her.

“Speaking of Jeff becoming human again, tomorrow will probably be a long day once Sam arrives.” Jemma told them. “You should get some rest, Coulson, and recover.”

“Thank you, Jemma.” Phil said softly, hoisting the kitten in the crook of his arm as he got to his feet. “And Daisy.”

“No worries, Phil,” Daisy joked, putting her hand on his shoulder. “I've always got your back.” She promised soberly, then grinned and added, “How many times does this make it?”

“Yeah, yeah,” He muttered fondly, giving her a smile before heading back to his quarters.

Most of the kitten’s things were still in Jemma's room, but Jeff-cat didn't seem to mind as he bounded onto the bed, pacing around as he tried to find a comfortable spot while Phil changed into a soft tee and sweatpants.

Once Phil cut the lights and carefully slid into bed though, Jeff-cat wriggled under his arm before he could pull the sheet up over himself, and pushed his nose up beneath the hem of Phil's shirt. In the blink of an eye, he was stretched over Phil's torso, snuggled beneath the t-shirt.

“Uh, what,” Phil huffed out an awkward chuckle, tilting his chin down and lifting up the collar of his shirt to look at the cat. His eyes were closed and his chin was nestled between his paws, just at the center of Phil's chest, and he was quietly purring.

Phil had to admit the warm and soft vibrations felt really nice against his aching body, and he let go of his shirt, pulling the sheet up carefully and relaxing as he closed his eyes as well. One of Jeff's paws was right over his scar, but it didn't hurt at all. He found it rather comforting, and he fell asleep almost immediately.  


**———**  


Sam Koenig’s knowledge of the cube wasn't much; he told them that it was great that they hadn't tried to have Jeff touch the cube again - that would, according to the info he _did_  know, have turned him into something else. He told them that the file on the object should most definitely be within Coulson’s black box, so if it wasn't, then Fury had hidden it elsewhere.

“I'll dig through it again, I guess,” Phil sighed, annoyed that they pretty much only confirmed what few theories they'd already made. None of this helped to change Jeff back human.

“You've searched all the keywords, right?” Sam checked, and Phil gave him a look.

“I've spent _hours_  digging through that thing for an answer. Forgive me if ‘mysterious blue cube’ is too vague of a search.” Phil snarked.

“Oh, well add ‘Asgardian’.” Sam replied simply, and Jemma, Fitz, Daisy, and Phil all stared at him. “You haven't done that yet? You _did_  find it in the Asgardian storage room, right? Had it been moved somewhere else? I swear to _God_  I'm going to smack Billy upside the head…”

“That's… I mean, the staff had been in there, but I didn't realize… all that stuff is Asgardian?” Phil wondered with surprise. Sam shrugged and nodded.

“Or supposed to be. See if that clears it up! If you still don't have any luck, in the meantime I'll see if I can get ahold of our resident expert in all things Asgardian.” Sam replied, and Phil immediately left the room without waiting to hear Jemma’s excited exclamations about Dr. Foster, hurrying back to his office.

“Damn, damn, why didn't I think of that? I should've thought of that!” Phil griped at himself, not realizing at first that Daisy was following him.

“Hey, give yourself a break. I'd be a little distracted too if I'd just seen my… boss… turn into an animal right in front of me,” Daisy tried to soothe, putting her hand on his arm for a moment. Jeff-cat was in the office, so Phil wasn't worried about him overhearing this, but he didn't really want to be discussing it in the hallway, either.

“He _is_  my boss,” Phil narrowed his eyes, and Daisy gave him a small smile.

“He's not _just_  your boss, though, is he.” She said knowingly, not asking. At his expression, she shrugged and added, “He does seem awfully attached to you. Maybe after all this is over,”

“Daisy, Scottish Folds are affectionate cats! It's probably just because I was the one there when he changed,” Phil argued, and Daisy raised a dubious eyebrow.

“I had to _persuade_  him to eat while you were missing. And Jemma told me he wouldn't sleep without one of your shirts. _And_  I've noticed how this is the first I've seen you without him shadowing you within five minutes.”

“Alright, alright, alright,” Phil huffed.

When they secured themselves in the office with the kitten, Phil opened up his black box and began digging again. It was a little easier with two sets of eyes and hands maneuvering through the hologram of files in the room around them, and adding Asgardian to the keyword search _had_  lessened the amount of files to a few hundred instead of the thousands.

“Damn, this thing is huge. What is it's capacity, exactly?” Daisy admired as they worked.

“I don't know for sure, but Fury assured me that I'd never be able to fill it in my lifetime.” Phil answered distractedly. “Damn, there's a lot of Asgardian square-shaped things, aren't there?”

“This is kind of weird.” She agreed. “Do you think it's a ruse? A bunch of fake things to hide the real one?”

“Why would Fury do that within the box, though?” Phil pointed out, and Daisy furrowed her brow thoughtfully.

“I don't know. Maybe that cube is more powerful than we think.”

“Yeah, well, it can turn human beings into animals, while keeping their consciousness fully intact. Can't be _too_  powerful,” Phil snarked.

“I mean, what if it had turned Jeff into like, a T-Rex or something?” Daisy theorized, widening her eyes a little. Phil gave her a dry look. “What,” she protested, “we don't know the limitations of it! What if it can turn people into animals from other planets? Or other alien species entirely?”

“I don't care what it can do - I just want to figure out how to change Jeffrey back!” Phil snapped, not angry with her, but angry with the situation.

“Hey,” Daisy lightly grasped his wrist, pulling his attention toward her. “You're still healing from the past few days. Why don't you rest for a bit? I'll look through this, and get you the moment I find something.”

Phil opened his mouth to argue, but he knew he looked just as exhausted as he felt, and he dropped his shoulders and nodded.

“Alright… just a nap. Come get me as soon as,”

“Cross my heart.” Daisy promised, interrupting him gently. He hesitated, but nodded again and shuffled over to where he'd pulled his couch back into the office.

The kitten was more than happy to watch him lie down onto the couch; as soon as he settled, Jeff-cat crawled up the side of the cushion and over Phil's legs, darting up beneath Phil's polo, curling up against his skin like he'd done the night before.

Phil grunted quietly but didn't argue, and kept his eyes firmly closed, not wanting to see what expression Daisy might be wearing. He simply curled one hand over the lump in his shirt, resting his palm against the kitten’s back.

Trusting Daisy to get the job done, Phil admittedly fell asleep fairly quickly, and found it difficult to wake when he felt Daisy gently shaking his shoulder.

“Phil? Phil, I've found something.” Her hesitant tone brought him into awareness much more quickly, and he blinked up at her. “You … might not like this.” She admitted, and his heart felt like it stopped for a moment.

Would Jeff be stuck as a cat forever?

That heart-wrenching thought in mind, Phil carefully extricated the kitten from beneath his shirt, nestling him back onto the cushion once he was off the couch. Jeff-cat barely woke up, easily napping once more within the warmth that Phil left behind, and Phil followed Daisy into the middle of the room.

“Here,” She pointed to a word document within a file she’d kept open. She silently gave him time to read it, watching how his brow furrowed and he read it again.

“Is this… for real?” Phil wondered incredulously. Daisy hesitated before she nodded.

“Yeah. He has to change back on his own. He has to want it.”  


**———**  


“He has to _will it_ ,” Phil informed Jemma, who had joined them in the office and read the file as well. She pursed her lips at it as if it annoyed her.

“This research claims its controllable, to a point. That's ridiculous.” Jemma scoffed, looking at where Jeff-cat was still sleeping, now stretched out on his back. “He would have changed back weeks ago!”

“Maybe he doesn't want it enough?” Daisy mused, and Phil snorted unhumorously.

“He doesn't want to be human enough?” Phil said pointedly, and Daisy huffed at him, a little annoyed by his attitude.

“I mean, hell - freedom from being the Director, can sleep all day, have people feed him,” She snorted and held her hands out as if her next comment was the best of all, “Shit - 24/7 cuddles with Coulson? I'd be tempted!”

“I never knew.” Phil replied dryly, his eyebrow raised at her. “I can hug you more often, if you'd like.”

“I mean,” She flustered, “not _you_  specifically. Well, for him maybe. But me, not,”

“Jeffrey wouldn't shirk his duties like that,” Jemma put in, refocusing the conversation. “We all know how much he wants to do this right. How much he wants SHIELD to be legitimate again.”

At a knock on the door, Phil closed up the black box and tucked it into his palm before announcing the person could enter.

“I've managed to speak to Dr. Foster, if you have a moment.” Sam announced after revealing himself, and Phil nodded and gestured him into the office.

“Close the door,” He requested as he set the black box back on the desk and opened up the file they'd been looking at.

“What did she say?” Jemma wondered.

“According to her, and heh, Thor,” Sam’s eyes sparkled with delight for a moment, but he managed to keep on topic, “The power is fairly controllable. Apparently, specific people from Thor’s world are chosen to wield it, and are trained for _years_  before they're allowed to have more than one animal in their repertoire.”

“What,” Phil wondered wildly, “what's that mean, exactly?”

“Well, the human body isn't designed to wield the power, so it was only momentary for Director Mace. He doesn't actually contain the power within him, so he's unable to control his change as an Asgardian would be.” Sam replied, looking off to the side as he attempted to repeat Dr. Foster’s words verbatim.

“Soooo, what? We _should_  let him touch the cube again?” Daisy wondered, after she updated the file with this new information.

“That's the part we have to be _realllly_  careful about,” Sam winced, glancing toward the kitten which still napped on the couch. “If he even thinks for a brief second about anything else when he touches it - anything living and breathing, I mean - he'll turn into _that_  instead of our Director. And…”

“And _what_?” Phil pressed.

“Again, this is something meant for Asgardians - special ones, ones who've trained. His human mind will only handle so many changes. So if he doesn't get it right in the first one or two tries…”

“Hell.” Phil hissed, grimacing. He pushed his fingers through his hair as he paced, looking toward the cat.

“Thor said that he had a friend who held this power. And that changing back to human - or Asgardian, I mean - form involved more than mere thought over the physical image of it. It helped to think of how it _feels_  to be human. To think of distinctive, strong, emotion-filled memories.” Sam explained.

“Humanity.” Jemma murmured thoughtfully as Daisy typed quickly.

“This is… kind of disappointing that humans can't handle it.” Daisy admitted, and the others looked at her. “I mean, can you imagine our agents being able to do this kind of thing? Forget Ant-Man - we could _literally_  have flies on the wall scoping out top-secret meetings and stuff.”

“And risk death by swatting? No thanks.” Phil replied, and Daisy smirked but nodded in agreement there.

“Should we… should we try this, then?” Jemma suggested, glancing toward Jeff-cat, who was now stretching slowly and standing up.

“Basically no room for error…” Phil murmured, and sighed. “The cube is still in the lab, right?” Jemma nodded, and he sighed again. “Might as well. I doubt waiting will make it any easier.”

“Oh, right - yes!” Sam exclaimed, and they all turned to him again. “Waiting in fact, makes it worse! He'll start to forget his humanity. Eventually, over a period of time, the animal - in this case, the cat - instincts will completely take over.”

They were all silent for a tense moment.

“How - long?” Phil demanded through gritted teeth.

“I… well,” Sam winced under Phil's glare. “For humans it's really hard to say. There's no way to know,”

“Estimate!”

“Well, the Asgardians,” Sam stammered, “they start to reveal diminished responses after ten weeks of prolonged time, and I think it’s safe to say that the human timeline could be even shorter than that,”

“Jesus, we’re not waiting another day.” Phil breathed, moving over to the couch and picking up the cat.

“Mrrp,”

“You better fucking be thinking about human Jeff _right now_ ,” Phil ordered to the kitten as he stalked out of the office and down the hallway.

“I um, I’ll go help get the cube ready and everything,” Jemma murmured as she hurried after him, and Daisy finished updating the black box before closing it up and tucking it away where she knew Phil was hiding it these days.

“For Phil’s sake as well as Jeff’s, I hope this works.” Daisy sighed. “Just when I think I’ve seen it all… people turning into animals. Shit.”  


**———**  


Those who knew what was going on hovered just outside of the curtained off area in the medbay, but only Phil and Jemma stood behind the curtain with the kitten and the cube. Phil explained very carefully to Jeff-cat what needed to happen, and hoped to God that he hadn’t already begun to lose any of his human consciousness. It was true that Jeff had become more comfortable as a kitten, but other than that Phil hadn’t noticed any change in his behavior. He hoped this was a good sign.

“Okay, just… don’t worry about us being here, okay? Just think about you. Your favourite memories - your _strongest_  memories. Remember being human, yeah? Everything that comes with that.” Phil encouraged, rubbing the kitten behind his ears one more time, before gesturing toward the cube they’d carefully placed on the floor.

Phil took a step back, standing next to Jemma, as he watched anxiously while Jeff-cat padded hesitantly toward the cube.

The kitten sat down in front of it, looking at it intently while Jemma and Phil both held their breaths. Then, Jeff-cat stood on his haunches and pressed both front paws against the side of the cube.

“Oh my _God_ ,” Jemma breathed, as a very human and a very naked Jeffrey Mace scrambled away from the cube, sliding on his butt against the linoleum.

He kept backing away from it until his shoulders bumped into Phil’s shins, and he tucked his knees up to pull his feet further from the object before he jerked his head back, looking up at Phil with a terrified expression.

His eyes were wide and blue and reminiscent to the kitten he was just a second ago, but they were completely human.

Phil let out his breath.

“There you are.”

Jeff blinked up at him, bewildered.

“Did it work?!” Daisy demanded, pushing through the curtains and looking about the room.

“ _Daisy_ ,” Jemma chided, though her voice was weak, still trying to register what had just happened in front of her.

Jeff’s hands immediately went to cover his groin, and the muscle in his jaw twitched as a blush bloomed across his cheeks and down his chest.

“Oh.” She noticed Jeff on the floor, and respectfully moved her eyes up toward Phil. “You’re uh, naked.” After a beat she grinned and added, “And human! It worked!”

Jeff opened his mouth, croaked something ineligible, then swallowed and tried again,

“Seems so,” His voice was rough as if he’d been sick for the past month, but it was relatively strong otherwise.

“Daisy, can you go get Sam to get him some clothes?” Phil requested softly, and Daisy nodded before disappearing again, informing those who’d dutifully waited outside the curtains that it had been a success.

“It’s good to have you back to yourself, Sir.” Jemma smiled hesitantly at Jeff, who know looked awkward and uncomfortable sitting on the floor leaning up against Phil’s legs.

“Here,” Phil held his hand out to help the man up, and Jemma turned partially away to provide the man some privacy as he needed to grab Phil’s arm with both of his hands. He was very unstable on his feet, and Phil quickly moved him toward the bed, carefully avoiding the cube on the floor.

As soon as his butt made contact with the edge of the bed, Jeff yanked the blanket on top across his lap and made sure it covered him enough.

“Thanks, Phil,” He managed. “For everything.”

“Well, I wasn’t gonna take you to the pound.” Phil replied, and Jemma tsk’d at him, but Jeff grinned lopsided and his shoulders shook, though his laugh didn’t have any noise.

Phil helped the man pull on a pair of shorts and a tee shirt once Sam arrived with some clothes, but then he gave the Director some privacy as Jemma needed to examine him.

He sat in the kitchen with a glass of bourbon, his fingers shaking with relief, and waited for Jemma’s prognosis.  


**———**  


It took a few hours for his equilibrium to settle, and there was nothing wrong with his throat other than the disuse of his vocal chords, and he needed to fill himself up with protein and nutrients, but other than that Jemma cleared him.

The first thing he did was eat. Since most everyone else had assumed the Director had been away in secret government meetings for the past month, it was easy to guise the group of them who _did_  know the real story were eating a large order of take-out as something of a ‘welcome back’ party.

Jemma didn’t necessarily like that Chinese take-out had been his choice, but she joined them and made sure he ate a lot of vegetables. He didn’t talk much, but no one seemed to mind, and they didn’t press him with questions about his side of the experience. He appreciated that immensely.

He never once looked Phil in the eye again, not since he’d been terrified on the floor, recoiling away from the cube. He was far too embarrassed, for multiple reasons.

The second thing he did was sleep. Sam helped him up the stairs and made sure he was alright before leaving him alone in his room, which he was also grateful for.

His quarters seemed unfamiliar. He’d spent most of his time in the office and in Phil’s quarters after all, while he was… not himself. The room also felt very empty, but he didn’t dwell too much on that before he collapsed into bed and promptly fell asleep.  


**———**  


He slept for so long that he felt disoriented when he finally woke up, but he also felt much more like himself. A long, hot shower helped even more, and he felt fully relaxed once he’d buttoned up his shirt and knotted a tie around his neck.

He spent a long minute looking at his reflection in the mirror, taking in the angles of his face, the cut of his hair, the tan (or lack thereof) of his skin. He felt like he’d never seen himself before, or perhaps not really? He straightened his shoulders and lifted his chin, breathing in deeply through his nose before releasing it slowly. There, he looked more confident, now. Exhausted, still, but confident.

When he stepped down the stairs and into the kitchen, though, that confidence he’d been able to gather quickly evaporated.

Phil was standing in front of the coffee machine, dressed in his workout clothes which was nothing unusual, but Jeff found himself desperately having to fight off the urge to approach the man and -

_Rub his cheek against the curve of his jaw?_

He stuffed his shaking hands inside of the pockets of his trousers. Human, human, he was human - people don’t do that.

“Hey,” Phil smiled carefully, having noticed him paused halfway across the room. “Want some coffee?”

“Sure.” Jeff managed after a beat, and at least his voice sounded mostly normal again. When Phil turned back toward the counter, Jeff pressed his lips together and forced himself to approach the other man.

He didn’t want to give anyone any more reason to worry about him. It was probably just residual side-effects, or something.

“How do you feel?” Phil murmured as he poured out two mugs of the steaming liquid.

“Not looking forward to this conversation I’m going to have to have with Talbot,” Jeff replied, trying to keep things light. Phil smirked as he put the carafe back under the drip and slid Jeff’s mug toward him.

“I don’t envy you.” Phil hesitated, and then looked at Jeff. “Would it help if I was there?”

“Uh,” Jeff was overwhelmed by the way Phil was looking at him. Phil _cared_ , and Jeff just wanted to curl up in that; he wanted to press his face against Phil’s neck and just -- “Nah, I’ll be alright.” Jeff swallowed and brought the mug up to his face, hoping that he wasn’t blushing, and took a sip of coffee.

The taste hit his tongue and he grimaced before he could help it, finding it difficult to swallow the drink.

“What? Too strong?” Phil wondered, sipping his own coffee. It seemed to taste fine to him, and Jeff swallowed again, trying to get the bitterness out of his mouth.

“No, no, it’s fine,” And it would’ve been - he _knew_  that it was just how he usually liked it. The bitterness seemed so overwhelming right now though, almost like he had a hangover and everything was just… too much. “I um, I should go make that call to the General.”

He hesitantly (and awkwardly, he could feel it) smiled at Phil before taking his coffee back upstairs, up to the safety of his office.

There was still evidence of Phil-the-Director up here, though - his wooden desk, his comfortable couch - and evidence of Jeff-the-cat, too. Jeff set his mug on the coaster atop the desk before he clenched his fists and tried to regulate his breathing, feeling himself begin to hyperventilate a bit.

“Human, human. You’re human.” He told himself, taking a deep breath and forcing it out, before sitting behind the desk and picking up the phone.

“General.” Jeff greeted when the man answered.

“Christ Almighty, son, I didn’t know I’d ever hear your voice again!” Talbot exclaimed, extremely relieved. “It was a shit-storm trying to explain your ass being gone for a month, but I managed it. Damn glad to have you in one piece.” He paused. “You are in one piece, right? All human? You don’t have any, uh, extra appendages I need to know about?”

“What, like a _tail_?” Jeff rolled his eyes. “No. I’m all human.”  _On the outside, anyway._

“Good, good…” Talbot hesitated again, unsure what to say next, which was very unlike him. “What… exactly happened?”

Jeff actually grew more comfortable as he explained the device, and put it in the factual terms that Jemma had come up with for the file on the object. By the time he finished explaining, he even felt more like himself enough to joke,

“By the way, I _do_  remember everything that happened while I was, um, different. I was still _me_ , after all.” Jeff announced, and Talbot was curiously silent. “I’m the cutest little furball, huh?”

“I swear to God, Mace, if you tell _anyone_  that I like cats, I’ll bury you.”

Jeff laughed, startling himself a little with the sound, and ended the call. He sat back in his chair, feeling a bit of weight off of his shoulders, and looked musingly toward the food bowl that was on the floor next to the desk.  


**———**  


By the end of a full week, Jeff felt like himself again. Mostly.

He couldn’t get rid of, frankly, his _longing_  for Phil’s presence. He saw the man every day; either passing in the hall or while eating in the kitchen or during work, but that didn’t seem to matter. He missed the man, he missed his comforting scent.

So when he was gathering up all the evidence of Jeff-the-cat, and he came across the bundled polo in the corner of Jemma’s lab, he carefully tucked it in his arm under everything else and took it back to his office.

Childishly, perhaps, he kept it hidden beneath one of the throw pillows on the couch. Phil had told him before that he could always keep the furniture in there if he’d liked; they wouldn’t fit in Phil’s office, and they weren’t doing anybody any good sitting in a storage room.

So Jeff kept them, and he also kept Phil’s shirt. And when he napped on the couch, which he still found himself doing for an hour or so in the afternoon, he would sneak the fabric out and hold it against his nose until he fell asleep.

As far as he knew, his secret was safe, and no one else had any idea that he was still struggling with some mild things. Not until three days later, anyway, when Jeff was frustrated over arguing with Talbot about letting the government examine the Asgardian Cube. He - probably stupidly - hung up on the General, growling in frustration as he paced toward the window.

Phil was in the room, as well, trying to back Jeff up on the decision, but Talbot was quite persistent.

“He’s always been a pain in the ass,” Phil commented, trying to alleviate the tension in the room, but it wasn’t just the argument that made Jeff frustrated.

“I know,” He sighed, annoyed, and felt more than heard Phil step next to him, peering out the window as well. Jeff tensed, unable to help it, and Phil glanced over without moving his head which told Jeff that he’d noticed.

“What’s up?” Phil asked quietly. “Anyone else giving you grief?”

“Just _me_ ,” Jeff complained, and then gritted his teeth. That was probably giving too much away.

“Jemma says there aren’t any lingering side effects to the…change you went through. But there are, aren’t there?” Phil asked knowingly, his tone still carefully quiet.

Jeff resisted the urge to lean against the man’s warmth. He didn’t care if it was weird or what - he just wanted someone to  _touch_  him. Weeks and weeks of petting and cuddling and suddenly nothing at all for eleven straight days. Logically he knew it was ridiculous - _humans_  didn’t get the same sort of interactions as pets did. He still wanted that interaction, though.

He wanted it so desperately, that when he felt Phil’s fingernails lightly scraping the back of his neck, and up into his hair, he didn’t think it was real at first.

Phil brought his hand down, and then back up, and Jeff’s eyes drifted closed as he let his head fall back a little against the weight of Phil’s hand. Encouraged, Phil pushed his fingers through Jeff’s hair more firmly, and Jeff couldn’t help the noise that escaped his throat as warm pleasure coursed down the length of his spine.

Fuck, he just fucking _purred_. It was a human purr, but that didn’t matter. Embarrassed, Jeff tensed and straightened his head again, pulling away from Phil’s touch.

“It’s okay,” Phil comforted him, grasping his shoulder and turning Jeff to face him. Phil slid his hand back around Jeff’s nape and stepped closer, pulling the slightly taller man into his embrace, resting his chin over his shoulder. “It's okay.” He whispered against his ear.

Jeff tucked his face against Phil’s neck and wrapped his arms around his torso, not saying anything else, not making any other noise; still embarrassed, but accepting what was offered. He wanted it too much to deny it, anyway.

Phil seemed to shiver slightly in Jeff’s arms, but he didn’t push Jeff away, so Jeff didn’t worry about it too much. He just breathed until he felt that familiar comfort again.  


**———**  


They didn't really talk about it, but Phil started doing little things over the course of the next week. In the mornings, he'd hand Jeff his mug of coffee and, if they were alone in the kitchen, brush his fingers through Jeff's hair behind his ear. The gesture was lingering enough to mean something, but he only ever did it just once before shifting away.

In the evenings, if it had been a particularly rough day, Phil would stop by the office and offer a hug. They were innocent hugs, but they would hold one another until they both breathed in tandem, muscles relaxed and stress-free from whatever had happened during the day.

They didn't talk about any of this, not until after Phil showed up one evening with one of his shirts in his hand.

“What is this for?” Jeff wondered as Phil held it out to him. “It won't fit me…?”

Phil waited until Jeff accepted the shirt before he gave him a little smile and moved to the couch.

“If you still need help sleeping at night,” Phil replied, shifting one of the pillows and pulling his old polo free. Jeff blushed furiously, but Phil didn't seem to mind all that much. “I thought perhaps a fresh one would work better.” Phil mused as he carried his old shirt out of the room.

Jeff stood there in the middle of the floor, still blushing, unsure of what just happened. Not only did Phil know he was literally using one of his shirts as a security blanket, but he was alright with it? Hell, how long had he known?

After another minute, Jeff lifted the shirt in his hands up to his face, and breathed in slowly.

He smiled. Phil had worn this one.

Jeff didn’t even bother to hide just how great he felt the next day, after a decent night’s rest (with Phil’s shirt tucked between his hands and the side of his face). He even put up with Daisy’s good-natured teasing, more or less.

“…Little hyper-active ball of fluff!” Daisy was saying, even getting a little smile out of Jemma, who usually tried to act like she was above all the teasing.

Jeff didn’t forget, though, how Jemma and cuddled and pet cat-version-of-himself just as much as the others had.

“A cat, dammit,” Jeff sighed, folding his arms across his chest as he leaned his hip against the conference table. “Why couldn’t I have turned into, like a, German Shepherd or something?”

“I thought you were cute.” Phil mused, smirking a little, but the teasing immediately turned onto him.

“That’s nothing new - you think he’s cute _now_ ,” Daisy scoffed, and Phil frowned at her.

“Okay, Daisy,” Jemma suggested, chuckling quietly in obvious agreement with her friend, “Why don’t we let the Directors, uh, Direct?”

She guided Daisy out of the room, but Jeff felt _less_  comfortable, now that he was alone with Phil.

He was immediately reminded of how, when he woke up this morning, he’d immediately stretched his hands out as if he were reaching for Phil’s leg, or side - something cat-version-of-himself used to do in the mornings. But Phil wasn’t there in Jeff’s bed this morning, because Phil and Jeff did not sleep in the same bed.

But Jeff wanted them to.

“What’s wrong?” Phil asked quietly when he noticed Jeff’s frowning, distant expression.

“Nothing,” Jeff assured him quickly, plastering on an easy smile. Phil raised his eyebrow, seeing right through it, and Jeff sighed as he turned toward the window. Looking at Phil wasn’t really helping.

“How long’s it been since you’ve had a tuna sandwich?” Phil wondered, his teasing gentler than they’d been acting a minute ago.

“I might have some for lunch,” Jeff admitted, the idea perking him up, some. Damn, he barely even used to _like_  tuna before all this.

“Is that it?” Phil pressed, sounding like he was standing closer to Jeff.

“It’s not enough.” Jeff sighed, and he could tell that Phil hesitated.

“What’s not enough?”

“The,” Jeff wasn’t sure what to call it, and turned around to face Phil. The _petting_? His morning _ear scritches_ , for crying out loud? He could feel his face flushing with embarrassment, and he grit his teeth together in annoyance at himself. He scratched at his ear in frustration, and recognition dawned on Phil’s face.

Jeff quickly turned back toward the window; as long as they continued not talking about it, it could continue to be not quite as weird…

“Can I ask you something?” Phil spoke very quietly, almost whispering, and he was most definitely standing closer to Jeff, now.

“Yes.” Jeff closed his eyes, his shoulders tensing slightly as he waited for Phil's annoyance, or his disgust.

“Do you miss it from everyone or is it just…me?” Phil wondered hesitantly, pressing his fingers against the back of Jeff’s head. Jeff didn’t answer at first, waiting to see what Phil would do, and sure enough, Phil slowly flattened his hand and pressed it up through Jeff’s hair, mussing it, but it felt so _good_.

“Hmmm,” Jeff sighed, his shoulders carefully relaxing, and decided to go for the truth. “Just you.”

This seemed to embolden Phil and he slid his hand all the way around the side of Jeff’s head, his other hand joining the first so he was almost cradling Jeff’s head between his palms. He curled his fingers to scratch bluntly against Jeff’s scalp, and damn it all but Jeff couldn’t stop the rumbling purr from escaping out of his chest.

“What else do you miss?” Phil asked more courageously, even sounding hopeful for Jeff’s answer.

“I kinda miss the belly rubs.” Jeff blurted, too distracted by the joyful tingling emanating from Phil’s touch all the way through his body.

“Well.” Phil’s hands paused, and Jeff realized what he’d said out loud, and he opened his eyes as he tensed again. “That, uh, could be arranged.” Phil’s voice sounded like it was just a hair’s breadth from Jeff’s ear, and Jeff couldn’t keep his eyes from drifting closed again.

He was dreaming, right? That was the only explanation for any of this. He was in his office, and the door was open, and not a single person has walked in on them yet? This had to be a dream.

One of Phil’s hands shifted toward the back of his head again, and the other disappeared, only to reappear against his waist, just beneath where his arm hung loosely by his side. Jeff startled at the contact but didn’t pull away, and Phil carefully slid his hand over Jeff’s shirt, around his body until his palm pressed against Jeff’s stomach.

Jeff sucked in a breath and held it, surprised and still a bit unsure, but when Phil shifted his hand up and down, just once, Jeff almost immediately leaned back against Phil’s front and sighed softly.

More sure now, Phil planted his feet so he could hold the small bit of weight Jeff was leaning into him, and rested one palm on Jeff’s hip as he leisurely drifted the other up and down Jeff’s torso.

Jeff let his head fall back against Phil’s shoulder and completely lost himself for a moment in the sensation. It was almost exactly like he was back in cat form again, curled up on his back in Phil’s lap while Phil worked quietly at his desk, one hand distractedly petting the kitten while he used him as a personal pillow. Warmth, contentment, safety, a feeling of _belonging_ , and something a bit more sharp and exciting, too…

Jeff opened his eyes slowly, looking at the ceiling as he lazily blinked himself back into present awareness. Phil’s jaw was pressed against his cheekbone, his breaths gentle and calm as his fingers drifted from Jeff’s sternum down to his belt, and back up again. Every now and then those fingers would ghost over the belt and touch Jeff’s lower abdomen, but only briefly.

Like it was an accident. But Jeff realized what that sharp and exciting feeling was now; it was human. And his humanity had him achingly hard inside of his trousers.

Jeff gasped and pulled out of Phil’s embrace, reaching forward to curl his fingers tightly around the edges of the brick windowsill in front of him. He was on the verge of fucking _coming_  in his office, in his _pants_ , with Phil standing right behind him -

Hell, that thought didn’t help matters. God, this couldn’t be more embarrassing.

“Sorry,” Phil apologized carefully, as if not sure what he was apologizing for, and Jeff gritted his teeth together again.

“It’s fine, I’m fine.” Jeff managed, trying to breathe through it without making it obvious. He just needed to clear his head, that was all, just take a few breaths, the feeling would subside…

“You sure?” Phil checked, his warm palm touching the small of Jeff’s back.

Jeff’s hips twitched and he tried to hide it by spinning around and slipping by Phil, heading for the relatively safety of his desk. All he had to do was sit down, slide in… or, no no, move the chair in, move the chair closer to the desk, fuck,

“Thank you, Phil. I’ll um, let you know if I need anything else?” Jeff dismissed him as carefully as he could. He could feel the sweat against the back of his neck as he tried to force his heart rate to stay down.

“Sure.” Phil nodded, and inwardly Jeff whined in despair at the pain that crossed Phil’s face for a brief moment. He just made Phil make that face; what the fuck was wrong with him, how could he — “Anything you need. Anytime.” Phil told him.

“Thank you.” Jeff told him earnestly. “I mean it, I… I don’t really know what else to say.” Thank God, that sounded a bit calmer.

Phil seemed to relax some, and his smile looked more natural.

“You’re welcome.” Phil murmured, and finally, finally, he left the room.

Jeff didn’t even bother worrying about the open door; he jerked his chair as far under the desk as it would go and yanked at the box of napkins on the desk as he fumbled with his belt with his other hand.  


**———**  


When he wasn’t busy, mid-day naps became something of a staple for Jeff, and honestly, he enjoyed it. It was one of the few side-effects he didn’t mind dealing with, because he always felt more refreshed and focused after he woke up. Anyway, he made sure not to make them too long - he did have an organization to run, after all.

He and Phil developed a routine that involved the usual brief contact during morning coffee, and sitting together on the couch after work, sharing a drink that was usually of the stronger sort. That timing always varied, since sometimes operations ran late into the night, but Phil always showed up in his doorway eventually.

Jeff came up with an excuse that the belly-rub idea was too much - too cat-like, and he needed to be focusing on normal human stuff. Phil took it in stride, and they didn’t bring it up after that. Phil did still sit with him on the couch, though; some nights just sitting side by side, pressed together knees to shoulders, and some nights with Jeff’s head resting on his shoulder. Jeff knew that Phil got just as much comfort out of these moments as he did, so he no longer felt ashamed about them.

What was innocent companionship as a cat, though, was growing into something different now that he was human. Well, perhaps not different, per se, but _more_. Jeff started having dreams, sometimes; dreams of Phil telling him how he was a good boy in breathy moans against his ear, dreams that left Jeff with more than the usual morning wood when he woke up.

 _These_  he was ashamed of. As far as kinks went, the idea of praise was rather tame, but Jeff didn’t want to abuse Phil’s companionship in that way, even in his head. Even considering the suggestive teasing Jeff was almost one hundred percent sure he’d heard from the other’s toward Phil, he figured it was just that - teasing. Phil had been put in a ridiculous situation, after all. Jeff wasn’t going to take advantage of it for the sake of his little crush.

He was in the middle of a particularly heartwarming dream when his phone alarm roused him, and he desperately tried to ignore it, keeping the dream going for just a bit longer.

He and Phil had the usual ‘cuddle’ on the couch after work, except this time they’d both had a little more to drink then usual, and had fallen asleep. At some point, as Jeff’s dreams are oft to do, they ended up length-wise along the couch, Phil on his back and Jeff face-down on top of him.

Jeff pressed his face against Phil's chest and hummed happily as he inhaled a deep breath of the familiar comforting scent, and Phil sucked in a breath and chuckled. It sounded mildly surprised, and suddenly Jeff was wide awake.

Phil was lying under him on the couch, his hands resting atop Jeff’s back and their legs tangled together. Unlike his dreams, they were still clothed, which confirmed to Jeff that this wasn’t his subconscious. They'd actually fallen asleep on his couch last night.

Jeff’s muscles tensed but before could push himself up off of Phil, Phil pressed his palm against the back of Jeff's head and kept him still, his other hand firming between Jeff’s shoulders to make sure the man got the message to stay. Phil scraped his nails lightly against Jeff’s scalp and it immediately elicited a lower noise from Jeff's throat.

“I've missed that,” Phil admitted softly. “You used to fall asleep on my chest, little body purring so hard that I could feel it… it made me feel…” Phil hesitated, unsure of vocalizing it.

Jeff was blushing madly with embarrassment, but Phil didn’t want him to move yet, and Jeff wasn’t mentally strong enough to fight it.

“Me, too,” Jeff murmured into the fabric of his shirt, letting him off the hook. This was it - this was that nirvana-like state he sometimes reached when he was a kitten curled up in Phil’s lap or the crook of his elbow or against the back of his neck. This was what he’d really been missing.

“Yeah?” Phil wondered, and Jeff smiled slowly again.

“Yeah.”

After a moment, Jeff burrowed his nose a little more into the warm fabric, humming that low groan again as he settled more comfortably atop Phil’s sprawled form on the couch. Phil didn’t seem to want to move anytime soon, so Jeff figured he might as well relax again and make himself comfortable.

Phil’s thigh was caught between Jeff's knees but he didn’t seem to mind that, one hand continuing to card gently through Jeff’s hair while he trailed the other down Jeff’s spine. Just as Jeff started telling himself that it was all cool, this could still be casual like all the other cuddling they did, Phil’s fingers pressed against his spine at his lower back.

Jeff couldn’t help but arch his back with pleasure; it was like Phil knew exactly what he secretly wanted. His groin pressed a little more firmly against Phil’s thigh and Phil’s hands froze, and then Jeff did too. There was no way Phil could mistake what  _that_  was.

“That’s different.” Phil commented, his tone unreadable. Jeff started to pull away, but Phil pressed a firm palm against the small of Jeff’s back, pulling him back down.

“I’m sorry,” Jeff started, but Phil interrupted him,

“It’s good different.”

Jeff hesitated for a beat.

“Yeah?” Jeff checked, and Phil grinned a little.

“Yeah.”

To punctuate his assurance, Phil shifted his thigh up against Jeff’s groin, pulling a quiet gasp from Jeff’s lips as a different kind of pleasure warmed his body. Phil twisted his hips a little so Jeff could feel his arousal too, and Jeff’s hands gripped Phil’s shirt a little tighter.

Phil was hard. Phil was hard because of _Jeff_.

But was that just because of the situation? Waking up in the morning with a warm body on top of him; a body that wouldn’t stop _damn purring_  - damn it!

Phil _had_  told him it was good, though. Or was that just lust clouding his brain?

As Jeff internally argued with himself, Phil’s hand stroked along his lower back again, once more causing his hips to curl, his bulge pressing right against Phil’s firm thigh.

“Stop,” Jeff begged, mildly bewildered to find his eyes watering. He squeezed them shut as he hid his face against Phil’s chest, though Phil had immediately acquiesced and halted the movement of both of his hands.

“Shit,” Phil realized, “you can’t control that, can you?” He sounded like he was scolding himself, and Jeff grew taut again at the thought that Phil would blame himself for any of this. “Fuck, I should have known that, I’m sorry,”

“I love you, Phillip.” Jeff whimpered into his shirt, and he could feel Phil hold his breath.

An agonizing silence dragged on until Phil whispered in appalled brokenness,

“Why do you say that like it’s an apology?” He was quietly demanding an answer, and Jeff slowly lifted his head so he could look up at Phil. Phil’s head was propped up on the throw pillow, so he could look down into Jeff’s eyes easily enough. He had a dreadfully serious expression on his face.

“I’ve liked you for a long time but after all this I — I,” Jeff pressed his lips together and dropped his forehead against Phil’s shirt again, not bearing to look him in the eye. “I care about you so much I can’t fucking breathe sometimes,”

“Fuck, Jeff, how do you still not know?” Phil wondered incredulously, and his tone gave Jeff the courage to peer up at him again. Phil was looking at him like he was crazy. “I should have told you a long time ago, I should have - damn it, scoot up here,”

Phil’s fingers gripped at Jeff’s shirt, encouraging him to move forward, but Jeff was hesitant to do so, quite aware of how close their faces were now, even though he was holding himself up at arm’s length above Phil’s face.

“Jeffrey Mace,” Phil told him, sliding his hands up to cradle Jeff’s head between his palms, his thumbs brushing against his cheekbones. “I don’t even have the words for how terrified I was that you were going to be stuck as a kitten forever, and I wouldn’t be able to look into your eyes, or see that smile ever again. I didn’t really acknowledge it until I was scared that I’d lost it — I love you, too,” Phil spoke earnestly, and Jeff blinked down at him. “I love you too, damn it,” Phil insisted, and pulled Jeff’s head down, until he was giving him a hard kiss.

Jeff froze, but only for a moment, before gingerly lowering onto his elbows and tilting his head to kiss Phil back.

Phil was kissing him. Phil loved him. Jeff honestly couldn’t believe it.

Phil smiled against his mouth and stroked his thumbs along Jeff’s cheeks, and Jeff realized he was crying again.

“Dammit,” Jeff muttered, tucking his face into the crook of Phil’s neck as if he could hide the wetness that now touched the man’s skin.

Phil wrapped his arms around Jeff’s shoulders and held him, pulled him down almost too tightly, as if he were trying to mold Jeff into himself.

“It’s okay,” Phil comforted him, and they both should probably get up and prepare for the day, but Jeff didn’t want to, and Phil didn’t seem inclined to either.

When Jeff felt the deep rumble begin in his chest again, he decided not to try and hide it, and peppered soft kisses against Phil’s neck and face as he let himself purr.

“How,” Phil swallowed when Jeff’s lips had drifted over his ear, “how does that work, now that you’re human?” Jeff shrugged, answering while he continued brushing his lips over Phil’s skin,

“Vocal chords, I guess. I feel it low in the back of my throat, which is probably why,” Jeff laughed softly when Phil slid his hand up beneath Jeff’s shirt and pressed his hand flat against his chest. “Probably why it seems like it’s coming from my chest.”

“Can you control it?” Phil wondered, his eyes closed as Jeff kissed everywhere but his lips.

“Yes and no,” Jeff murmured as he nuzzled the hollow of Phil’s throat. “It’s rather difficult too, when I’m… really pleased.” He admitted that with some embarrassment. Phil’s fingers shifted through the smattering of hair on his chest and he sighed, nuzzling along Phil’s jaw until he was kissing his mouth.

Phil hummed, and slid his hands down until he was holding onto Jeff’s butt and pulling him down firmly, reminding Jeff that they were both still hard.

Jeff deepened the kiss, and Phil widened his knees so Jeff was cradled more comfortably against his hips.

It was almost casual the way they rutted against one another until they both came in their pants, quietly panting against one another’s lips. Although neither of them had lost a single article of clothing, it was still one of the most intimate acts of sex Jeff had ever experienced, and he couldn’t stop smiling once he and Phil eventually got off of the couch and straightened up.

Phil’s smile was almost shy when leaned in to kiss Jeff one more time, before he snuck to his quarters to shower and change out of yesterday’s clothes.

Jeff didn’t have to worry about sneaking since his quarters were right next to his office, and while he was in the hallway, he did a quick little jig of happiness before he managed to control himself and walk normally.

He was pretty sure his ear-to-ear grin wouldn’t be going away anytime soon, though.  


**———**  


“As much as you’ve seemed to miss the belly rubs, why do you rarely let me do that anymore? I find it hard to believe that after two seconds your petting quota is sated.” Phil told him, and Jeff grimaced.

“It’s, ah…well,” Jeff figured it was alright to admit to, now. After everything else. “It’s a bit of a Pavlovian response, I think.”

“That was a dog.” Phil joked, and Jeff chuckled quietly. “But really, though, is it… not as good when you’re human? I mean, as a cat, you’d probably let me rub your belly for hours.”

Jeff barely suppressed a groan at the thought of testing that out, and seeing just how long he could put up with Phil petting him like that before he…

“It’s good, trust me,” Jeff promised, and Phil seemed pleased by that. Jeff remembered how Phil had leaned the side of his face against his own that first time, and realized that Phil might’ve been enjoying it almost as much - though it couldn’t have been _quite_  as much - as Jeff had.

“So…” Phil prodded when Jeff didn’t answer, his fingers touching Jeff’s collar as if he were considering just seeing for himself.

“You know, like, a genie in a bottle?” Jeff began, and Phil raised his eyebrow dubiously. “You rub the bottle and the genie comes out?”

Phil punched Jeff in the chest before Jeff even finished his statement, the both of them laughing.

“Oh my God, Jeff,” Phil groaned. “That is the worst euphemism,”

“You asked.” Jeff shrugged, grinning playfully when Phil looked at him again.

“Wait a minute, so that first time I… in your office, when you let me do it for a while, you…?” Phil blinked wide-eyed at him. “When you pushed me away, it wasn’t because you hated it,”

“No,” Jeff admitted, still rather embarrassed by that whole event, “I liked it, in fact. A lot.”

“Wow,” Phil breathed, looking at Jeff in a whole new light, now. “I made you come in your pants without even touching your pants.” Phil grinned cheekily, extremely proud of himself, and Jeff sputtered.

“You did _not_!” He protested, and grumbled, “I might’ve come like two seconds after you left the room, but I did _not_  ruin my pants.”

“Wow, two seconds?” Phil leaned forward in interest, and his hand was most definitely trailing down Jeff’s torso, now.

“Hey, hey!” Jeff warned, grabbing his wrist and halting him. “We're in the office!”

“We were in the office last time,” Phil pointed out.

“Yeah but I was - I wasn't thinking clearly then,” Jeff argued.

“Well, don’t think too hard now, then,” Phil reasoned, tilting forward to peck a light kiss against Jeff’s mouth. As soon as Jeff’s grip slackened just slightly around Phil’s wrist, Phil pressed his palm more fully against Jeff’s stomach.

“You’re incorrigible,” Jeff complained, but he sounded happy about it, and Phil smiled as he kissed him again.  


**———**  


They managed to keep their relationship just between them, for a while, until late one night they got a little too cuddly while playing video games in the lounge.

They were waiting for a new campaign to load and Phil still had unanswered questions about Jeff's time as a kitten.

“That whole snuggling under the shirt thing you started doing after I was kidnapped; what was that about?” Phil wondered as they slouched side by side on the couch, both of them with their feet propped up on the edge of the coffee table.

Jeff didn't answer for a moment.

“My paws got cold. It's drafty down here underground.” He eventually replied, and Phil raised his eyebrow at the man’s tone.

“So you're saying it wasn't separation anxiety?” Phil mused, smirking a tiny bit. Jeff pursed his lips, but managed to keep his embarrassment at bay.

“It _is_  drafty.” He set his controller on the coffee table and turned toward Phil. “See, still cold,” He quickly shoved his hands under the front of Phil's polo and pressed his fingers against Phil's stomach.

Phil yelped at Jeff's icy touch and dropped his controller to the ground, about to push Jeff's cold fingers off of him, but then Jeff leaned in close until their noses brushed and their lips were mere millimeters apart.

“Mm, you're warm,” Jeff flirted in that low, growly voice he knew Phil liked. Suddenly Phil didn't seem so bothered by Jeff's cold hands and he instead slid his grasp up around Jeff's arms, holding him close while he lifted his chin to kiss him.

They were usually much more careful than this when they were outside of the office or quarters, but now Jeff had leaned Phil over sideways onto his back, his hands sliding higher up Phil's torso and his tongue in Phil's mouth. Phil was always enthusiastic about making out with Jeff, so who was he to stop him, now?

Phil sighed quietly against Jeff's lips, sliding his hand up and around the back of Jeff's neck. His fingers brushed through the ends of Jeff's hair and Phil told himself to try and remember to tell Jeff how much he liked when he let the curls grow out a little.

“ _Woah_!” Mack’s exclamation made them freeze for a half-second, before they jerked themselves apart quickly. Jeff sat up and shifted over away from Phil while Phil straightened as well, both of them with equal looks of embarrassed guilt on their faces. “Did I just walk in on you _making out_?” Mack wondered incredulously, staying where he was in the doorway of the room.

“Ooo, who’s making out?” Elena wondered with interest, peering around Mack. She looked at the guys on the couch with surprise, but then she grinned slowly. “See, I told you there was something going on,” She elbowed Mack, “When Coulson named his cat after the Director!”

“We, uh, we were just,” Jeff’s tongue darted out against his lips nervously; they still tasted like Phil and that distracted him a little. “Playing some Call of Duty!” He smiled, and Mack blinked at him.

“With your hands up Coulson’s shirt?” Mack returned dryly.

“They were really making out!” Elena sounded impressed, and Jeff blushed furiously. Mack looked like he wasn't sure what to do or say, next.

“Did you want to play a game?” Phil asked, leaning over to pick his forgotten controller off of the ground and set it on the table.

“Well, yeah, but if you guys are in the middle of, uh,” Mack trailed off, gesturing toward the screen where it was obvious they hadn't been focused on the game.

“Nah, you take over.” Phil suggested, getting to his feet with a smile. “We’re done with Call of Duty for the night.”

“We are?” Jeff wondered, looking up at him, and Phil grabbed his elbow and hauled him up.

“Yeah, Jeffrey, we are.” Phil teasingly rolled his eyes and slid his hand down to tangle his fingers with Jeff's.

“Okay,” Jeff replied hesitantly, glancing once at the other two while he let Phil tug him toward the stairs. “Uh, ‘nite,” He said questioningly, and Elena chuckled.

“Goodnight!” She called jovially, before she slipped around Mack and hopped onto the couch, grabbing up one of the controllers on the table. “C’mon, Turtle-man!” Elena teased when Mack hesitated.

“They were just…” Mack trailed off, giving the couch a wary look, and Elena snorted and rolled her eyes.

“We still ride in those SUVs, do we not? And we all _know_  what Bobbi and Hunter do in _there_ ,”

“ _Knowing_  and _seeing_  are two different things!” Mack protested, but he did gingerly lower himself onto the couch next to her. He picked up the other controller and they played quietly for a minute or two, before Mack fully relaxed and managed to put the image seared on his brain into a box in the corner of his mind. He wasn't sure how he'd be able to look his boss in the eye next time he saw him, but he couldn't deny his happiness for his old partner.

“They're kind of cute.” Elena commented, and Mack groaned.

“Can we not, please? He's the _boss_ ,”

“But Coulson’s your friend,” Elena reasoned.

“Yeah, and I'm happy for him, I really am. But you didn't see what I saw, and I'd rather I hadn't seen it.”

“Okay, okay,” Elena smirked, tilting over to push her shoulder against his lovingly. He smiled at her and leaned back. Rather intense PDA aside, Mack did agree with her on some level, but he wasn’t going to admit that out loud any time soon.

* * *

 


	2. Phone Sex

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Thanks. This is going to be fun to try and hide._
> 
> _Why would you want to? I’m proud of that._
> 
> _What the hell am I supposed to tell the President?_
> 
> _That you got hella laid._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Always a goodie.

“Phil?” Jeff answered his phone curiously, looking around the secretary’s office he was currently waiting in. He was the only other person in here other than her, but he still kept his voice down. “How’s it going?”

“I’m thinking about your mouth on my dick.”

Jeff’s breath caught in his throat and he coughed, glancing wildly at the uninterested woman behind the desk, as if she could have heard what Phil had said.

“Um… is this code?” Jeff wondered quietly, refusing to believe that it could be anything else.

“Underneath the desk… maybe during a mission brief. Making it hard for me to talk.” Phil spoke lowly, but casually.

“Jesus.” Jeff cursed under his breath, and tugged at his collar as he started to feel a little warm. He shifted in his seat, and glanced at his watch.

His meeting with the President was supposed to start fifteen minutes ago, but one didn’t rush the President of the United States. He was on that man’s time schedule now, and he would have to wait for however long it took.

Phil made a rumbling noise over the phone, and Jeff leaned to the side in his chair, propping his elbow on the armrest as he crossed one knee over the other. He turned his head to tuck the phone closer into his shoulder and hissed,

“Where are you?!”

“In your office.” Phil replied cheekily, and Jeff closed his eyes for a moment as he repressed a groan.

“Sir? Are you alright?” The secretary had taken notice of him again, and was now raising her eyebrow dubiously in his direction.

Jeff straightened up immediately and ended the call, slipping his phone back into his pocket.

“All good.” He assured her, sending her a quick smile. She blinked at him, and returned her focus once more toward her computer.

“It should only be a couple more minutes.” She told him, and he nodded, although she wasn’t looking at him anymore.

He slipped his phone back out, and turned the front-facing camera on the make sure he wasn’t blushing as red as he felt. He wasn’t, thankfully, but he _did_  catch notice of something worse.

There was a hickey on his neck, not quite fully covered by the collar of his dress shirt.

He half gaped for a moment as his blood froze in his veins, and then he pursed his lips and arched his head to the side, revealing the hickey a little more and snapping a photo of it. He messaged it to Phil along with a caption.

_JM: Thanks. This is going to be fun to try and hide._

Almost immediately, Phil responded.

_PC: Why would you want to? I’m proud of that._

_JM: What the hell am I supposed to tell the President?_

_PC: That you got hella laid_

As Jeff huffed and rolled his eyes at Phil’s reply, a photo came in, showing Phil’s jeans unzipped and half down his thighs, revealing a hickey on his pelvis.

_PC: Aren’t you proud of that?_

Jeff rotated his jaw as he tried not to react too openly to the photo.

_JM: THAT’S easily hidden. And did you just drop your pants in the middle of the office???_

_PC: Wouldn’t you like to know…_

_JM: Omg Phil we talked about this_

_PC: Oh? You wanna talk about it again?_

Jeff knew immediately where this was headed, and while the idea invariably interested him, this wasn’t the time or place for sexting.

_JM: Dammit Phil I’m IN THE WHITE HOUSE_

_PC: Guess you better try to keep it down, then._

“Director?”

Jeff yanked his head up at the young woman’s voice, and slipped his phone back into his pocket again as he got to his feet.

“The President will see you now,” She smiled as she gestured him into the Oval, and he sent her an apologetic smile.

“Sorry about the phone call. Seems SHIELD can't stand being without it’s Director for even a few hours!” He joked, and she laughed lightly as she shook her head.

“No problem, Sir. We understand your work is important.”

As she shut the door behind him, the President said goodbye and walked a few men out of the door on the opposite side of the room. Jeff quietly cleared his throat and pasted a disarming smile on his face as he met President Ellis in the center of the room and shook his hand.  
  


**———**   
  


“Perhaps you should check your phone?” President Ellis smirked as Jeff's cell buzzed for the fifth time in as many minutes, and Jeff blushed as he apologized profusely and dug his phone from his pocket.

“I apologize, Sir; we’re running an op that's a bit of a … sensitive nature, at the moment.” He grimaced as he checked his messages. “I was assured all could be handled while I was here in the city…”

“I completely understand,” The President chuckled, waving his hand in the air. “Would you like a water? Take your time.” He got to his feet and moved toward a drink cart that featured no doubt some expensive alcohol, but also had some bottled water on the lower shelf. “How many agents involved, if I may ask?”

“Oh, just one…” Jeff answered, partially distracted as he schooled his facial expression while reading through the texts.

_PC: I can’t stop thinking about it now_

_PC: That hot wet mouth of yours_

_PC: The way you can take all of me_

_PC: btw these jeans do nothing to hide my boner rn, you know_

_PC: [download multimedia?]_

Jeff swallowed his suddenly very dry mouth, and moving his finger slowly, as if it had a mind of its own, tapped _[confirm]_.

“Everything alright?”

“Sorry?” Jeff twisted his wrist to press the face of his phone down against his thigh before the photo completely loaded, and looked up at where the President now stood next to the couch, holding out a bottle of water.

“Seems like a lot of messages concerning just one agent.” President Ellis commented, waiting for Jeff to accept the offered water before moving toward the couch opposite and resettling in his previous seat. “Must be an important agent.”

“Ah, everything’s fine.” Jeff glanced at the image on his phone before locking the screen and sliding it back into his pocket. He could feel his jaw muscle twitch and he hurriedly opened his bottle of water and took a long drink from it.

The angle of the photo was from somewhere above Phil’s shoulder, looking down his chest and stomach from his slouched position in Jeff’s desk chair. He was completely clothed, in a purple button-up shirt and dark blue jeans, but his previous text had been correct. There was a clear print of his cock just beneath the left pocket of his jeans, and if the last photo he’d sent hadn’t confirmed it, this one sure did - Phil was going commando in those jeans.

Jeff almost choked on his water and he pulled the bottle away from his mouth for a moment as he breathed it out, before taking one more swallow and screwing the cap back on.

When he focused back on the President, the man was looking at him with a mildly concerned raised eyebrow.

“Do we need to cut this meeting short?” The President asked, and a part of Jeff was touched that the Commander in Chief was so concerned over the possibility of even one of his agents being in trouble.

The other, more selfish part of Jeff, wanted to absolutely cut this meeting short, and get on the plane back to HQ as soon as possible.

“No, no - everything is alright.” Jeff assured President Ellis, in much more calm a manner than he felt. “I don’t want to have wasted your time, or mine. Let’s get back to business.”

President Ellis nodded, Jeff’s phone buzzed again, and Jeff subtly shook his head, gesturing for the President to continue what he’d been saying earlier.  
  


———  
  


_PC: I changed my mind_

_PC: instead of a blowjob, I’m thinking, why don’t we just make out?_

_PC: While I push you against the wall and rub my long, throbbing dick against yours, of course_

_JM: Fucking hell, Phillip_

_PC: Maybe we could make out on the couch, instead?_

_PC: Teasing you with my fingers until you’re writhing_

_JM: you’re an asshole_

_PC: no it would be YOUR asshole_

_JM: jfc_

_PC: [download multimedia?]_

_PC: well damn, I’ve got myself all hot and bothered and no boyfriend here to help me_

Jeff had to stop walking in the middle of the hallway, and put one hand against the wall to steady himself.

Phil had sent him a very short video, thankfully with no audio; a close-up of the crotch of his jeans, and more importantly, the bulge in those jeans. The shot wasn’t as “artful” as Phil’s other sexy selfies tended to be, but Jeff soon realized why.

Phil was throbbing underneath the denim, the fabric tenting with the movement, and Jeff’s breath suddenly felt heavy in his throat.

“You okay, sir?” One of the secret service agents paused and gave him a suspicious, wary look.

“Bathroom?” Jeff requested, making an embarrassed face. The man relaxed and pointed the way, and Jeff nodded his thanks before quickly disappearing.

_PC: check your vm honeybuns <3_

Jeff was both amused and dismayed by the nickname, but the little heart emoji put a wide smile on his face before he could stop it, and he dialed his voicemail number as he pushed open the door to the restroom.

“….Hey….” Phil was breathing heavily, and Jeff froze in the middle of the room as he stared wide-eyed into space. “Mm… haha, sorry I couldn’t wait,” Lord almighty, Phil had recorded himself jacking off! “Uh…”

Whatever he’d been about to say drifted off into a sigh, that eventually ended with Jeff’s name. Phil’s grunts were quiet - he was probably still in the office - but they quickly became more strained and faster-paced and Jeff’s pulse was racing along with it.

“Fuck, Jeff — aw, fuck,” Phil growled out a particular moan that made Jeff’s spine tingle and his own partial erection twitch with need.

He scrambled into a stall to try and get himself under control enough that he could walk out of the White House without a raging hard-on, and saved Phil’s message before ending the call and sending the man a text,

_JM: You’d better prepare yourself now because I’m going to fuck you over my desk as soon as I get back._

Two minutes later, he received a reply.

_PC: Way ahead of you, dear :}_


	3. One Bed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of those tropes I could read about endlessly, but I’ve rarely posted myself. So, here we go!

“I’m proud of you, you know.” Phil’s voice carried softly through the darkness, his words filling Jeff with a warmth that he didn’t want to explain too deeply.

Phil had always believed in him, even when he screwed up. Even when he wasn’t sure, Phil still decided to give Jeff a second chance - and that was one of the biggest reasons why Jeff was here today.

Well, not _here_ , specifically; laying on the single queen-sized mattress in the room with Phil Coulson just to his right. _That_  was because the hotel Talbot had booked for them to stay during the symposium had some sort of convention going on, and it was completely full.

Jeff was here in town, though, as the Director of SHIELD; still legitimate, still a voice for the Inhumans. He still wasn’t the best with the tactics of the job, but with Phil by his side - figuratively, anyway - he was learning.

Phil literally being by his side, that kind of terrified him.

“You’ve come a long way from being shot in the ass in the woods,” Phil teased gently, and Jeff groaned quietly.

“I was shot in the _leg_ ,” He muttered for the hundredth time. Phil was allowed to rib him, though. In fact, Jeff generally liked it when Phil teased him - it reminded him that he belonged here. That he was a part of this team now, too.

“You did a good job, today.” Phil spoke softly again, and Jeff couldn’t keep the pleased smile off of his face. At least the room was dark enough that Phil wouldn’t notice it.

“Talbot’s obviously pissed about it, though,” Jeff reminded him, thinking over scenarios of conversations he would be having with the General in the coming weeks.

“Talbot’s always pissed about something,” Jeff could hear the shrug in Phil’s voice, “he’ll get over it. SHIELD needs to be it’s own entity, especially concerning our agreement with the Inhumans. The United States military does not need to have even the possibility of control over the Index.”

“With great power comes great responsibility,” Jeff mused heavily, quoting. Justifiably handling the Index was another thing that terrified him. Just because he wanted to do right by the Inhumans didn’t make him infallible, but it had been impossible for him to get approval for removal of the Index entirely. The most they could do today was assure to keep registration voluntary.

“Exactly.” Phil replied to Jeff’s words, sounding proud again. “Rest easy tonight, Director. Because tomorrow you get to fight about funding.”

“Thanks, Phil.” Jeff returned dryly, and Phil chuckled lightly before turning onto his side, putting his back toward Jeff.

The movement reminded Jeff of their situation, and he tried not to dwell on the fact that they so comfortably chatted in bed together before falling asleep. His little crush was mere admiration; more hero-worship than anything else, like Phil himself with Cap. He wasn’t about to lie awake all night fretting like some teenager - he was the Director of SHIELD. The Patriot. He could handle spending a night sleeping next to Phil Coulson.

He hoped.  
  


**———  
**  

Agent Piper called the next morning to inform them she couldn’t pick them up after the day’s meeting as originally planned.

“I can be there tomorrow by 1100. Talbot’s fronting the hotel rooms, anyway, right? Just hang around town, spend the morning off. You could probably do with a break, anyway.” Piper suggested.

She was often Jeff’s go-to pilot when he needed travel, and she was also his combat training partner, so she had a little more freedom in her conversations with him than most of the other agents.

Phil’s and Daisy’s teams were more casual with him as well, but surviving the Framework together cemented a camaraderie between them all that no one else questioned.

Still...

“Yes, _mother_ ,” Jeff rolled his eyes, but Piper laughed on the other end of the line.

“I’m making you run an extra mile for that.” Piper informed him cheekily, and he sighed.

“I can never win with you, can I?” He mused fondly.

“Is that May?” Phil wondered, sitting down on the other side of the small table, a fresh cup of coffee in hand. “Is she picking us up today?”

“No, it’s Piper. Who’s been hanging out with Agent May too much, in my opinion,” Jeff responded, raising his eyebrows, and Phil smirked.

“Was that Agent Coulson?” Piper wondered, returning the relationship jibe. “I thought you said you just ordered room service.” She gasped more loudly than necessary. “Did you two meet up for breakfast? How cute!”

“We’re going over last minute talking points. Message me tomorrow when you’re on your way.” Jeff replied dryly, hanging up before Piper could say anything else.

No need for anyone else to know about their little situation with the hotel.

Besides, there was nothing wrong or out of place eating breakfast with one’s traveling partner.

“Fruit?” Phil offered the bowl after snagging one and popping it into his mouth, and Jeff accepted it happily as he slipped his phone into his trouser pocket.

“Strawberries; my favorite!”  
  


**———  
**   


Budget meetings were an unfortunately boring necessity in running an organization, and after it was finally over, Jeff was anxious to get some fresh air. Phil had no doubt picked up on that, and suggested they walk around the city for a bit.

“It’s a little past lunch,” Phil mentioned, glancing at his watch, “maybe we’ll stumble across an interesting restaurant.”

An hour later, they did; Jeff noticed Phil’s piqued curiosity, and held the door open for him, smirking.

The meal was good, spent mostly in comfortable silence, other than the one time they were interrupted by a rather polite fan of The Patriot.

Phil was the one smirking, now, as Jeff accepted the request for a photo. He continued to eat as he quietly observed Jeff interact with the younger man, until they were alone once more.

“It’s too bad you’re in a suit, and not _the_  suit,” Phil mused, and Jeff barely managed to contain his groan at the thought.

“In this heat? I would practically be melting by now.”

As it was, he’d removed the jacket of his suit while they were walking and had been carrying it over his shoulder, his finger tucked into the collar to hold it in place. Phil, probably the smarter of the two, hadn’t brought a jacket in the first place, so all he had to do was roll up his sleeves and be done with it.

Phil chuckled at Jeff’s comment, and Jeff preened at being able to rouse such a noise from the man, while also dragging his eyes away from the toned arms he’d been staring at.

It wasn’t that they never laughed or had a good time - in fact, everyone seemed more relaxed lately than they had since Jeff first took on heading SHIELD - but Jeff still felt proud whenever he could get a smile out of Phil.

Realizing he was staring again, Jeff dropped his gaze back toward his plate and worked on finishing off his meal.

They explored the city a little more afterwards, until Phil announced he’d like to hit the gym before he tired himself out walking around. Jeff figured he could use the time to catch up on the happenings at HQ, so when they got back to the hotel, Jeff toed his shoes off and relaxed against the headboard of the bed with his ankles crossed and computer in his lap.

When Phil came back into the room an hour later, Jeff tried to keep calm while he felt his pulse jump in his throat. Thankfully, Phil didn’t seem to notice; not wasting any time digging through his duffel for fresh clothes before disappearing into the bathroom. Jeff did his best to stop thinking about Phil’s glistening and flushed skin before the man was finished with his shower.

Jeff was quite pleased with himself for having normal and friendly thoughts about Phil by the time he reappeared from the bathroom, the steam and heat from his shower wafting into the room after him.

And then he plopped onto the bed next to Jeff, mirroring his position by leaning up against the headboard and crossing his ankles together.

“Mind if I turn the television on? There was a Clint Eastwood film on downstairs and I haven’t watched a good western in a while,” Phil wondered as he reached for the remote on the table next to his side of the bed.

Jeff stared at him, distracted by his casual attitude, and by the clean, fresh scent that seemed to wrap itself around Jeff entirely.

Thankfully, at least, the laptop hid his boner.

“Sure,” Jeff swallowed, forcing himself to relax. “Sure, I like a good Eastwood movie.”

He tried not to think too hard about how domestic this all suddenly felt, and especially not about how happy that made him feel.  
  


**———  
**   


Jeff blearily blinked his eyes open at the five a.m. alarm, not happy about the early hour today any more than he ever was. He was _not_  a morning person; luckily Phil seemed to take it in stride and knew to wait until that first mug of coffee was gone before attempting any lengthy conversation.

Not even the prospect of coffee could get Jeff to move right now, though.

He was on his side, rolled over close to the middle of the bed, his head basically at the edge of his own pillow. Phil, once again, was mirroring him - which meant he was close enough that Jeff could feel his breath against his face.

They weren’t touching one another at all, which gave Jeff some relief - there’s one cliché he didn’t have to worry about - but there were mere inches between the tips of their noses.

Phil opened his eyes suddenly, startling Jeff, but he didn’t otherwise move. He blinked at Jeff, and then smiled slowly, almost dopey. It was definitely a very fond look, and it made Jeff hold his breath.

The slope of his eyes, the soft wrinkles in the corners, the color of his iris’ Jeff couldn’t quite define in the early dawn light... Jeff was hit with the stark realization that he loved Phil’s face.

Phil blinked again, something in his expression changing slightly, and then he rolled onto his back and sighed sleepily as he pushed himself up.

“You want breakfast?” Phil asked around a yawn. Jeff stayed where he was, staring at the back of Phil’s t-shirt. Phil glanced back down at Jeff, and Jeff nodded silently.

He didn’t really trust his voice, just yet. He was too busy fighting down the urge to feel the stubble on Phil’s jaw beneath his fingertips.

Phil nodded and slid out of bed, stretching a little before reaching for the phone. It was still fairly early, but the hotel claimed to have 24-hr room service. Dialing, Phil snagged the menu and sat on the edge of the mattress again, the folder in his lap as he figured out what to order.

Jeff couldn’t stop staring at the nape of his neck. The sharp lines of his somewhat-fresh haircut, the curves of his ears, the jut of his jaw when he turned his head just slightly... fuck, but Jeff loved more than just Phil’s face.

He loved everything about him - and his chest constricted as he accepted this information. Then, as Phil began to speak to whomever had answered his call, Jeff’s entire body seemed to fill with warmth, and he couldn’t just lay there any longer.

He needed some space; at least get out of the bed, hide in the bathroom or something, anything to get control over himself before Phil could read what was surely written all over his face.

Instead, he pushed himself up slightly and shifted across the mattress, until he was just behind Phil, his hand up and reaching out...

Phil jumped when Jeff touched the back of his neck, but he only turned his head curiously, before asking lowly,

“What do you want?”

Jeff stared at his face as he let his fingers spread over Phil’s skin, his palm warm against his nape.

“Coffee,” Jeff replied, surprised at how calm his voice sounded, though it was still an octave low from sleep. “And waffles.”

“Waffles?” Phil repeated, as if Jeff touching him wasn’t odd in the slightest.

“With maple syrup,” Jeff nodded, looking at the path of his own hand now as he trailed it curiously down Phil’s spine.

Phil sucked in a breath, but then repeated Jeff’s order over the line, sounded just as calm as Jeff had. Except, Jeff could feel his heart pounding beneath his palm. He could feel the outline of Phil’s scar, too, but he was more interested in the curve of muscle than digging into a past Phil may or may not want to talk about.

As Phil confirmed the total order, Jeff slipped his hand up beneath the black tee, finding Phil’s skin hot.

“Uh, yes,” Phil stumbled over his words for the first time during the call, “that’s, that should be fine.” He was nodding, even though the person he was talking to couldn’t see him. Jeff brushed his thumb along Phil’s spine, and Phil leaned into his touch slightly. “A half hour. Got it. Thank you.” Phil was sincere but quick to end the call, his hand shaking slightly as he put the phone back in the cradle.

Jeff leaned in and brushed his lips against the back of Phil’s neck, barely a whisper of a touch, but he couldn’t keep himself from doing that at least just once. He lingered with his nose pressed against Phil’s skin, breathing him in, before gingerly extricating his hand from beneath Phil’s shirt and backing away.

He wasn’t even sure about apologizing for his actions; he honestly didn’t want to. He felt he should say something, though, but just as he finally opened his mouth, Phil half-turned his body around to look at him. He had that same expression he’d had when he first woke up, and it took whatever words Jeff was about to attempt right out of his mouth.

“Why did you do that?” Phil wondered, serious but not demanding. Jeff figured Phil deserved his honesty.

“I was tired of not doing it.”

Phil stared at him, his lips parted slightly. Jeff didn’t think it was quite in shock - honestly, Phil didn’t look as shocked at all as Jeff had expected him to be - but he had no idea what was going to happen next.

“Did I ruin our friendship?” Jeff wondered, and Phil pressed his lips together.

“Not if you do that again.”

“What?” Jeff wasn’t sure he’d heard him right.

“Please,” Phil whispered, “Do it again.”

Jeff was definitely the surprised one this time, but after a moment, he hesitantly shifted closer again. Phil didn’t move at all, but he was still turned slightly toward Jeff, so when Jeff slowly tilted his head, his mouth landed more on the side of Phil’s neck instead of his nape.

He paused there, not moving his lips as he felt Phil’s pulse jump. And then Phil shifted his chin up, allowing Jeff more room, so Jeff opened his mouth against Phil’s neck and gave him more of a serious kiss. He tasted just as good as he smelled, and Jeff couldn’t help but press the flat of his tongue against Phil’s pulse.

Phil released a breathy noise, his hand suddenly pressing against the back of Jeff’s head, his fingers tangling through his hair.

And then Jeff found himself half-draped over Phil, the man beneath him tugging frantically at his t-shirt as he kissed every inch of his neck he could reach.

And then they were both shirtless, the roughness of Jeff’s morning stubble on his cheek brushing against Phil’s own and making him quiver with excitement. Phil’s hands were all over Jeff’s chest and sides as Jeff kissed across Phil’s shoulder, nibbling here and there.

He was determined to touch his mouth against every part of Phil’s skin if Phil let him.

And then Phil was hauling him back up and thrusting his tongue into his mouth and now they were full-on, properly kissing, and Jeff figured even a fly-by of the QuinJet couldn’t pry him away from him.

Phil gripped Jeff’s shorts and hauled him over completely on top of him, thrusting his hips up against Jeff’s.

Jeff moaned into Phil’s mouth, overwhelmed with finding himself doing this, here, now, with Phil Coulson. And _fuck_ , Phil was hard, and Jeff really had only expected a kiss; he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to handle anything else. Jeff was just as aroused, of course, but that was the problem; this was all going to end very quickly if Phil didn’t stop doing that thing with his tongue against the roof of Jeff’s mouth.

It was self-preservation that forced Jeff to pry his mouth from Phil’s and kiss his way down the man’s chest again. Phil’s hands darted into Jeff’s hair again, gripping and blunt nails scraping without being painful.

“I want your mouth all over me,” Phil groaned lowly, and it made fire dance through Jeff’s veins.

“Oh good,” He managed to breathe out between kisses, “that’s what I want, too.”

He’d reached the curve of Phil’s hip, where his sleep pants hung low, tempting...

“Breakfast!” Phil hissed, his hands slow to slide away from Jeff’s head.

“What?” Jeff mumbled against Phil’s abdomen, furrowing his brow. He’d just started to hook his fingers into the waistband of Phil’s pants.

“Door!” Phil groaned, flopping back flat onto the bed, and Jeff finally heard the knocking and he sighed heavily, resting his cheek atop Phil’s hip for a brief moment.

He didn’t realize they’d been kissing for that long, but nonetheless, their room service had arrived. Heaving another sigh, Jeff pushed himself off the bed and strode toward the door, one hand adjusting the front of his shorts quickly before he opened the door.

“Hi!” He greeted the serviceman brightly, remembering at the last minute to keep his voice down. It was still pretty early in the morning.

The kid barely looked twenty, but was smartly dressed in his uniform and was more-or-less professional, other than when he glanced wide-eyed toward Jeff’s hair briefly.

“Your breakfast order, sir?” He gestured toward the small rolling cart between them and rattled off the order, and Jeff managed to listen attentively and not think about what awaited him just behind him.

“Sounds perfect,” Jeff agreed once he had finished, nodding and smiling gratefully.

“Have a uh, good day, Director Mace.” The young man smirked slightly before turning and heading back down the hall, toward the elevators.

“Damn,” Jeff mused as he pushed the cart into the room and kicked the door shut with his foot. “That kid knew who I was. And I’m pretty sure knew what I’ve been doing.”

He looked up from the cart just in time to be smacked in the face with a bundle of fabric. He automatically grabbed at it as Phil replied,

“What you’re about to do, you mean,”

Fuck. Jeff was holding Phil’s boxer shorts.

He looked up to meet Phil’s eyes, and promptly forgot about breakfast again as he rounded the cart to leap onto the bed, making Phil laugh as he landed on top of him.

Jeff smiled.  
 

 **———  
**  

“I have a problem,” Phil murmured in Jeff’s ear, just as the debriefing with Daisy’s team was ending.

“What is it?” Jeff wondered, keeping very still so Daisy or May or Elena wouldn’t notice the way he flushed as Phil’s breath ghosted across his cheek.

“It seems I’ve run out of clean sheets on my bed. I have nowhere to sleep tonight.” Phil replied, still low enough that none of the others who were straggling out of the office could overhear.

Daisy, though, saw Phil whispering.

“What’s up?” She asked, her brow furrowing slightly when neither man immediately replied. “Something wrong?” She asked more suspiciously.

“Nothing’s wrong.” Jeff replied easily, smiling as he got to his feet, subtly pushing Phil out of his personal space. He was thinking of Phil being in his bed, though, and it made his hands tremble a little bit.

Daisy narrowed her eyes.

“Coulson just said he had a problem,”

“It’s classified.” Jeff interrupted, feeling his cheeks flush slightly and turning his back to her, facing his desk.

“Nothing mission related, don’t worry Daisy,” Phil assured easily, and she raised her eyebrow at him.

“Well, you got him all worked up about it.” She muttered, gesturing toward Jeff. “Or did you forget I can read people’s heart rates? What were you,” She snorted, “whispering sweet nothings to him?”

Again, neither man immediately responded, and she paused, then slowly gaped.

“Oh my God, _were_  you?” She almost squealed, and Jeff turned around to give her a warning look.

“Inappropriate, Agent Johnson.” He scolded, and her snort was one of derision, now.

“Oh, I’m Agent Johnson now, am I?” She shrugged and turned to leave them alone. “Whatever your ‘problem’ is, Phil, I hope you get it sorted!” She called joyfully over her shoulder as she left, her innuendo painfully obvious.

“Sorry,” Phil didn’t actually sound all that sorry, “the hotel was a couple of weeks ago and I’ve gotten rather impatient...” He glanced over his shoulder before stepping closer to Jeff. “Do you know how difficult it is, to look at you every single day, and not be able to touch you?” With his low murmur, he pushed his fingers up through Jeff’s hair, just above his ear.

“Yes, actually,” Jeff sighed deeply, closing his eyes for a moment as he appreciated the touch, “I know very well.”

Phil nuzzled the curve of Jeff’s jaw, and Jeff made a warm, rumbling noise before he could keep it down.

“As Director, the ability for my agents to perform in the field is paramount,” Jeff gently pulled away from Phil’s touch, giving himself some space so he could clear his head. “Being unable to sleep at night is a serious concern.” His eyes flashed as he gazed directly into Phil’s. “What else can I do, but offer my own bed as compensation?”

Phil smiled widely, that true smile that was just a little lopsided, that smile that made it impossible for Jeff to keep from kissing him.

So he did.


End file.
